girl meets hogwarts
by authorisasauthordoes
Summary: A series of one-shots featuring the clique six as students at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.
1. maya hart dropped the quaffle

**A/N:** more on the girl meets hogwarts au can be found on my blog under tagged/gmw-hp-au !

* * *

 **YEAR 4**

By the time the team was suiting up for the big match, Lucas Friar promised himself he'd be over it. He would stop thinking about the fact that Riley had gone to the Yule Ball with Charlie Gardener, he would be over the fact that they were basically an unofficial thing, he would stop obsessing over the fact that maybe if he had just asked her a day sooner, an hour sooner, a minute sooner rather than waiting until the last minute like the idiot he is, then maybe things wouldn't be so weird between them now.

He told himself he'd be over it. But as he stands next to Maya in the Gryffindor locker room and puts on his gear, he still won't shut up about it.

"I just find it funny," he starts, trying to maintain as neutral a tone as possible. He's not doing a very good job, evidently frustrated. "That Riley doesn't seem to be under the impression that she and Charlie are any different than they were before."

Maya hums indifferently, tightening the strap of her elbow pad without giving him a second glance. He knows she's trying to send him a clear message—that she doesn't care and that what Charlie Gardener is up to is of the least importance to her currently—but he literally cannot bring himself to shut up.

He leans down to adjust his knee pads, before lifting his head again as another thought strikes him. "Like, Riley is her own person and it should one hundred percent be up to her whether or not she wants to actually be in a relationship with someone. I completely respect that. But you know, when you're always with someone, and constantly holding their hand or hugging them, it stands to reason—,"

"Ugh, shut up!" Maya finally snaps, dropping down on the bench next to him and taking his jersey to yank her towards him. She gets right in his face, narrowing her eyes dangerously. "Ranger Rick, I do not have time for you to obsess over this. Do you hear that?"

He pauses, listening. Just outside the doors to the pitch, the noise of hundreds of students and faculty moving into the pitch to watch the upcoming match thunders around them.

"You know what that is, Hop-a-long?" She doesn't give him a chance to answer. "That's all of the student body coming to watch this match. You have to get your head in the game, because if you aren't entirely in this match and you get in the way of me scoring at least fifteen goals before Charlie Gardener can get his perfect little Hufflepuff hands on that Snitch, I will make sure you suffer for the rest of your pathetic days at this school. Do you understand me?"

"Loud and clear," he grumbles, taking her hand and removing her from his shirt.

The captain enters the room and calls them to huddle up. Lucas and Maya head over together, brooms slung over their shoulders.

"Okay." Jasmine Gonzalez, a sixth year Chaser and the Gryffindor team captain, clears her throat. "I know what you're all thinking. This is the championship game, last one of the season. What happens on that pitch today may very well make us go down in history… or infamy."

Maya shoots Lucas a look. He rolls his eyes.

"We shouldn't let our guard down even for a second, but we should also remember that the Hufflepuffs haven't won the Quidditch Cup in over ten years and we're champions three years running." The team cheers, patting each other on the back and getting riled up. Jasmine smirks. "We beat the Slytherins within a record-setting fifteen minute game, and we ran Josh and his silly Ravenclaws into the ground."

"What a victory," Maya says happily, relishing in the delight of remembering how badly they crushed the Ravenclaw team. The others grin at her.

Jasmine nods in approval. "Let's get that feeling back again today. The Hufflepuffs aren't easy to beat, but they're no match for us. Even with their shiny new Seeker—Friar, Ross, don't let him get anywhere near the Snitch. That's your main focus. Don't lose sight of that."

Despite how muddled his thoughts have been since winter term, Lucas figures sending the Bludger at Charlie Gardener as hard as he can is one thing he can still manage. He nods.

"Balagot, you keep all your attention on that Snitch. Get it before Gardener does, or so help me I'll fly right off the pitch and into the sunset. Strong, keep an eye out for Meyer because you know he's got a wicked long shot and is probably going to try and score some goals from as far back as possible. Do _not_ let him score a goal. And Hart?" Jasmine turns her attention to her fiery Chaser, her eyes proud. It's no secret she's training her to be captain when she graduates and passes on the helm. "Do your thing and get us up there so it's not even worth catching the Snitch."

Maya grins mischievously, nodding.

Jasmine does one more go around to make sure everyone is suited up properly as the crowd grows louder and louder, anxiously anticipating the Gryffindor team's walk onto the pitch. Once everyone is set, Jasmine shoulders her broom and, with Maya standing proudly by her side, leads the team out the doors and onto the grounds.

The noise of the assembled spectators is deafening when they actually step outside the locker room. It's an abnormally large crowd for a day like today, with rain falling and thunder crashing overhead, but all of them play by the knowledge that you can't cancel Quidditch. Rain or shine, if there's a match, they're on the field. Particularly the championship.

Lucas squints through the drizzle, straining to find Zay and Asher in the crowd. They're not hard to spot, partially due to the fact that Asher is waving an obnoxiously large sign with a screaming lion on it, and partially because there's a speck of blue amidst the sea of red as Isadora Smackle is standing with them. Zay waves eagerly at him, shouting things Lucas can't make out but knows are words of encouragement.

He tries not to let it get to him that Riley isn't standing in the Gryffindor stands like she usually is. She's somewhere in the Hufflepuff crowd, there to cheer on her Seeker boyfriend.

The teams assemble in front of Madam Hooch, watching as she demands a fair, clean match and forces Jasmine and the Hufflepuff captain to shake hands.

Charlie stands in the mirror position of Maya, right at the captain's side with his friendly, charming smirk on his face. Lucas remembers seeing the same smirk when Riley hugged him outside the locker rooms an hour or so ago. He resists the urge to throw his Beater bat preemptively.

"Yes, this is your commentator for the match this afternoon, Slytherin Sarah Carpenter, hoping to provide you all with accurate and at times necessarily harsh criticism as the game unfolds. At my side I have Professor McGonagall, who presently looks like she regrets allowing me to be the commentator for this match. It's like you said, professor, we need an unbiased viewpoint for the championship."

Madam Hooch instructs them to mount their brooms, raising the whistle to her lips. Lucas steels his nerves, feeling that sense of uncertainty he always gets in the pit of his stomach right before a big match. Maya's told him she recognizes the feeling too—it's the rush of knowing how dangerous the game is, but taking the risk and playing anyway. It's a thrill both of them enjoy.

"The captains have shaken hands, and the players are set to fly. There goes the Snitch. It's tough to predict who is going to catch it first—Balagot's always been a tough Seeker to beat, but since his appearance on the pitch last year Gardener has proven himself a legendary Seeker."

Madam Hooch blows her whistle, and immediately all fourteen players kick off into the air. Jasmine and Maya stay low, waiting for the her to toss the Quaffle, but Lucas starts climbing high. He's keeping an eye on Charlie, who is soaring far above them, attempting to get a starting glimpse of the Snitch through the rainy haze.

"The Quaffle is up—and the match begins!"

The stadium roars as the game truly gets going. Lucas keeps a firm grip on his bat and watches both Charlie and Maya as best he can, making sure to knock a Bludger towards anyone who gets too close to their star Chaser. Within the first ten minutes Maya's scored three goals and is working on a fourth. Hufflepuff has only scored once.

"Meyer's looking real irritated, you can tell considering Strong keeps blocking his long shots. But Hart just keeps putting them through—and there she goes again! Ten more points to Gryffindor. They lead, forty to ten."

Lucas cheers Maya on a few feet below him, just swerving away from the goal posts. She beams up at him and gives him a wink, zooming off towards the other end of the pitch.

"Looks like a rough start for the Hufflepuffs, but—oh, what's that? Looks like Gardener has got his eye on something! He's moving fast!"

Jasmine rushes by Lucas, nudging him and startling him. "Keep on Gardener!" she shouts, catching the Quaffle from the other Chaser and speeding away. Lucas regains focus, heading down to trail behind Charlie. Whatever he thought he was chasing, he seems to have lost it. When the Bludger gets close enough, Lucas takes aim and knocks it right towards the Hufflepuff Seeker.

He barely ducks out of the way in time, twirling around and giving Lucas a disgruntled look. "Watch your aim, Friar!"

"That's the game, Gardener!" he yells back.

He keeps up the attack on Charlie whenever an opportunity presents itself, thanks to the advice from his captain and also for his own sense of satisfaction. He sends the Bludger in his direction but one of the Hufflepuff Beaters blocks it, sending him a warning glare across the field.

"Another goal from Maya Hart. She's shaping up to be a real star, if only her class marks were as impressive as her aim—sorry professor, just telling it like it is. Gryffindor leads, seventy to twenty, and both Gardener and Balagot have yet to get a good lead on the elusive Golden Snitch."

Lucas scans the pitch for Bludgers, observing the crowd as he goes. There's a sense of vindication in how bummed the Hufflepuffs seem in their current state of being crushed by Maya's knack for scoring. He completely loses the feeling however when he catches sight of Riley in the crowd, decked out in her yellow and black and cheering for her team, regardless of how badly they're losing.

A Bludger zips past his ear, shocking him out of his daze. Billy Ross flies up behind him and knocks it back in the other direction, towards the Beater who sent it his way in the first place. He gives Lucas an annoyed glower.

"Get your head out of the clouds, man! Focus!"

Lucas takes a deep breath, nodding and moving as far away from the Hufflepuff stands as he can. He notices Charlie take a sudden nose dive and peels down after him, eyeing the Bludger coming his way. Using some of the residual resentment from seeing Riley cheer so hard for Charlie, Lucas lines up the shot and sends the Bludger as hard as he can in his direction.

Charlie just barely swerves out of the way in time, losing track of the Snitch. He scowls at Lucas. Behind him, the Gryffindor stand erupts into cheers.

"And there goes Friar again, being extra aggressive in his playing techniques this time around. I guess when it's the championship match you can't hold back, but anybody else wonder if maybe he's compensating for something? No? Just me? I'm sorry, professor, I'm just telling it like it is!"

Lucas tries his best to block out Sarah's obnoxious commentary. He's not compensating for anything. It's his job to lob things at Charlie. He's just playing the game.

The longer they're in the air, the worse the storm gets. Lucas regrets not grabbing his goggles before heading out on the field. He squints through the haze, still doing his best to keep an eye on Charlie who is having an even harder time keeping an eye on the Snitch the heavier the rainfall becomes. At this point he's higher up than he's been yet, scanning the pitch below for even a hint of where to look.

"With an excellent fake-out from Hart and Gonzalez—an obvious mentor/mentee relationship if I've ever seen one, wonder who's going to take over the team when she finally graduates—the Gryffindor tem takes on an impressive lead of one hundred and sixty to twenty. The Hufflepuffs are just not on their game this afternoon. If Hart can get in another goal before Gardener can grab the Snitch, this game is as good as over. Sorry, puffs."

Lucas tightens his grip on his Beater bat, which is only getting more slippery with the weather. Charlie takes a dive and Lucas goes after him, not letting him out of his sight. He's only got to tail him for a few more minutes… Just long enough for Maya to get one last goal…

"And Hart's got the Quaffle again. She may really do it folks, I cannot believe the Gryffindors may cream the Hufflepuffs _this_ badly. Sorry, professor, but really, this is pathetic. There's an impressive pass to Gonzalez… Meyer tries to steal, but Hart's quicker…"

Lucas feels a shock of panic run through him when he catches Charlie's expression change, going from lost to concentrated in an instant. He's seen the Snitch. Lucas will be damned if Charlie catches the Snitch when Maya is so close to pulling through.

"She's almost there now. Hart is going to be a legend for this, she's scored almost all the goals this entire match. I can't even see through this rain but I bet she's got her queen bitch smirk going right now—sorry, professor…"

Billy Ross flies up on the other end of the field and blocks a Bludger coming for Maya. Lucas turns to give him a congratulatory nod, confused by the look of horror on Billy's face.

"Friar, look out!"

Lucas whips around, expecting to see Charlie grabbing hold of the Snitch, when a Bludger hits him full force in the stomach. The wind is knocked right out of him and he doesn't even realize what's happening until he's lost grip of his bat and is falling off his broom, tumbling through the sky towards the pitch fifty feet below.

"Oh my God, Hart just dropped the Quaffle. Maya Hart dropped the Quaffle. That's the first time she's ever dropped the Quaffle. She was about to snatch up victory for the Gryffindors. Why would she.. where is she going? Wait… oh my God, Friar's fallen off his broom! Friar's going down!"

The last thing Lucas sees is a flash of red zooming towards him from above and the muddy ground coming towards him way too quickly.

Then, in an instant, everything goes black.


	2. whatever we'll be

**A/N:** Happy Ficmas, day 3! One of my first ever GMW fics was a HP AU one shot known as "Maya Hart Dropped the Quaffle," in which Lucas fell off his broom during an intense championship match. Then, I left him waiting on the muddy pitch with no resolution for about two years. Sorry bud.

Now, this Ficmas brings us the second half of this HP nugget I put the oven so long ago. Cheers! Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Hoggy Hogwarts, teach us something please...

* * *

 **YEAR 4**

Everything is a blur. It's a blur of black and gold as Riley pushes her way through her classmates and down the stands, forgoing her standard politeness for the sake of speed. Desperate to get down to the pitch, thinking of nothing else as she takes the stairs three at time and tries to keep her heart from bursting out of her chest.

She has to get to the pitch.

Riley has personally never cared much for Quidditch as a hobby—she's rarely cared much for any sport magical or muggle, and the flying spectator sport is decidedly at the bottom of her list. Sure, she attends the games to support her classmates on the Hufflepuff team and she's always loved seeing the joy on her friends' faces when they make a particularly good play or score the winning goal. She's as proud as anybody else that Maya might very well be the most talented Gryffindor Chaser in decades, and she'd never be the one to tell her fiery friend to tone down the aggression during matches or wear an additional pad or helmet or any conceivable form of safety gear imaginable.

But she's also spent too many afternoons when they were children biting her nails, terrified that the next time her best friend slipped off her broom and hit the grass would result in far worse injury than a bruise or two. She's spent enough hours in the hospital wing with Charlie in the last year, getting scuffs treated that he assures her are no big deal even though they happen too often for her comfort. She's spent enough sleepless nights before a major match fretting over every worst case scenario, visualizing far worse injuries from far more threatening heights that could potentially befall her most cherished people all because they want to play the most dangerous game in the advent of magical athletics.

Now that she's literally seen it happen, she doesn't think she's ever going to sleep again.

She has to get to the pitch. She has to get to him.

Riley thought he seemed distracted. She had admittedly been watching him throughout the match, internally cringing every time a Bludger got too close or he made a risky dive. Of all the positions in Quidditch she resents Beater the most, hating the inherent violence behind the role and unnecessarily large amounts of risk it adds to game and all the players involved.

But she also knows him—knows his own colorful history and the amount of internalized violence he's seemed to be dancing with all his life—so of course that's the position he'd be brought on to play. Naturally, when he gets picked third year to join the team, Gryffindor captain Jasmine Gonzalez praises his ferocity and his determination and his ability to channel all that frustration into killer plays that help win them a championship. Because that's all anyone seems to value in him, or so he's told her in hushed, late night conversations in the library when both of them are being pointedly more vulnerable than they'd ever be in the light of day or with anybody else.

But it helps him feel worthwhile—it makes him feel seen—so he takes the position with pride and plays every game like it's going to be his last. That's the kind of person he is, both on and off the pitch.

She wishes he knew how much she values everything else about him, so many little things she can't put into words. She wishes he could see that he is seen, that she sees him, so he could've never stepped onto the field and gotten himself into this mess.

When she breaks through the Hufflepuff team room and onto the field, she's amazed to discover she's the first one to arrive on the scene. Most of the players are still circling the air, only just beginning their descent as Riley is already well on her way across the turf.

She spots his broom first, having veered in another direction once he abandoned it midair. It's sticking out of the ground, splintered in several places and certainly never going to fly again. Even if he manages to get out of this still mobile, she knows he doesn't have the money to afford a new one. If his broom is any indication of the state she may find him in, she can't stomach the thought of what she might have to see when she reaches him.

Then she spots him, a heap of cardinal and gold lying motionless a few feet away.

"Lucas." His name comes out choked, somewhere between a cough and a gasp. Then she's running, sprinting across the turf to get to his side. "Lucas! Lucas!"

By the time she drops to her knees next to him, the rest of the world seems to catch up. She can hear the footfalls of other Quidditch players as they descend to assess the situation, brooms hitting the turf with pointed thuds.

She doesn't care. She doesn't care about anything else, only that he's okay.

Riley forgets all her common sense as she reaches out to grab his shoulder, pulling him towards her and flipping him onto his back. He's admittedly far less damaged than she anticipated, considering the sheer distance he fell. But the dirt and blood smearing his face and the bruises that are already forming on the areas of skin exposed by the way his uniform shifted upon landing aren't making her feel optimistic, and he's so pale. For a person so traditionally tanned golden and full of life, he's remarkably dull. He's dull, immobile and heavy in her arms.

"Is he okay?" The shout comes from feet away and then in the next second Maya is joining her. She isn't sure she's ever seen her best friend look so concerned, at least for someone outside the two of them. "Oh my God, is he breathing? Holy—,"

She honestly can't tell if he's breathing or not. He's so perfectly still, chillingly uncharacteristic for the boy who can't ever seem to stop fidgeting.

Riley can feel the crowd beginning to thicken around them, players and spectators alike converging from the stands. She wishes they would back off. She wants them to leave him alone. She wants him to be okay and she wants to be with him and she wants everyone else to disappear.

"Out of my way," a gruff, authoritative voice commands. The sea of students parts as Madam Hooch storms towards them, moving with more urgency than Riley has ever seen her use in a standard flying lesson. "Out of the way, move! Now!"

She nearly jumps out of her skin when she feels a hand touch her back. It's Charlie, goggles pushed back out of his face and looking at her with concern.

Hooch finally makes it to them, Cory sprinting to catch up behind her and pushing his way through the crowd with about as much ferocity as Riley earlier. When Madam Hooch sees that she's moved him, a bout of fury flashes through her features.

"Miss Matthews, are you out of your mind?" she snaps, crouching down next to her. She continues to berate her without paying her any actual attention, solely focused on the broken boy half-sprawled on her lap. "You should _never_ move an injured player before the damage has been assessed."

Riley can't remember how to use words. Her voice comes out shaky. "I know. I'm sorry—,"

"What if the bones had been broken? Do you know how much worse you could've made the injuries? Do you realize you could've made things horrifically worse?"

"I'm sorry," she whispers again, feeling tears prick the corners of her eyes. She can't even process what's going on. Her fingers are still holding onto Lucas, twisting the fabric of his uniform anxiously.

" _Are_ they broken?" Maya interjects, getting the conversation back on track. She stares at Madam Hooch, obviously not sure she wants to hear the prognosis or not.

"No, his physical body should be intact. Someone seems to have cast a slowing enchantment which helped break the fall," Cory explains, breathlessly coming to stand with them. He glances down at Lucas, looking a little sick. Riley can imagine how disturbing it must be to see one of your favorite students in such a precarious predicament—about a fraction of how sickening it feels to see it happening to one of your best friends. "Risky business, though. The kind of effects that can have on the mind—,"

He can't bring himself to finish the sentence. Madam Hooch presses her lips into a thin line, brushing some hair from Lucas's forehead before rising to her feet. In an instant she's back in command mode, all tenderness gone as she begins to bark directions.

"I do hope someone has already gone to fetch Madam Pomfrey. I want everyone else to clear the field. This match is cancelled!"

A chorus of groans echoes from the assembled crowd. Riley feels another sting of resentment, unable to believe that some of her classmates care more about the outcome of a stupid match than the well-being of one of their fellow students.

One of the Chasers on her team, Wyatt Livingston, pipes up. "But that's not how the game works! If a team taps out because one player falls off their broom—,"

"Yeah, what about the World Cup from '78?" another student chimes in. "When two players totally bit it but they kept playing until they caught the Snitch. Wouldn't that mean a forfeit—,"

Jasmine steps in, fire burning in her eyes. "There's no forfeiting going on! What's going on is our teammate is unconscious, so you can take your complaints and you can shove them right up your—,"

"Enough!" Hooch declares, putting her whistle to her lips and blowing three harsh, grating blows into the air. The remaining assembly grimaces, a few covering their ears. "The conclusion of this match is undetermined until further notice. Everyone disband, _now_!"

Her voice booms across the pitch, demonstrating an impressive amount of projection. Students begin splitting up immediately, clearing the way for help to arrive.

"Unbelievable," Wyatt mutters, marching off with a majority of the Hufflepuff team.

The Gryffindor team remains huddled around their fallen teammate, Zay and Smackle finally making their way through the dispersing crowd to join them. Zay drops down right next to Maya, so stunned that he can't seem to speak. Maya wraps an arm around his shoulders, comforting in a moment when so much seems uncertain.

When Madam Pomfrey arrives with a couple of older students to help transport Lucas to the hospital wing, Gryffindor players are more than happy to offer another hand. Charlie asks Riley if she wants him to stay, but she assures him that he might as well go and give the team a pep talk. Not that she thinks they're the ones who need consoling, but it's all she can do not to think even worse of her classmates and besides, all she cares about is staying with Lucas. It's all she can focus on, so she's certain she won't be much fun to be around.

The entire crew of them follows him to the infirmary, his more bullish teammates getting into heated debate with Madam Pomfrey when she explains to them that there's absolutely no way she can let them all in at once, especially when they haven't even properly examined his condition. She turns them all away and promises them they'll know as soon as he's able to have visitors, the hallway clearing out until it's only Riley, Maya, and Zay remaining outside the doors.

Madam Pomfrey gives them an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, dears. But this is policy. You'll have to come back once we've given him a full assessment."

"What does that even mean?" Maya snarls. Although such a harsh tone towards a faculty member tests Riley nerves, she's grateful she's speaking for the both of them. She's totally out of words, and although she's managed to keep herself together this long she can feel the panic beginning to take grip of her heart and work its way through her veins like ice.

Zay chimes in, indignant. "We're his best friends, we have the right to see him. How can you not know from looking at him whether or not he's okay?"

"Quidditch can cause injuries that are not immediately visible to the eye," Pomfrey states calmly. Then worry crosses her features. "Not to mention the spell that was cast to cushion his fall. It undoubtedly saved his life, but enchantments like that can have side effects. It's going to take some time to see how it may affect him."

"Please," Riley pleads, vision blurring with tears. She locks eyes with the nurse, feeling a couple slip down her cheeks. "Please, I have to know he's okay."

Her expression is sympathetic, entirely genuine. But the plaintive head shake she offers as she begins to back through the hospital wing doors feels as comforting as a slap across the face. "I'm sorry, Riley. I'll send an owl as soon as he can have visitors."

"Madam Pomfrey, please," she croaks again, but it's no use.

Pomfrey shuts the hospital wing doors behind her, locking them out and permanently separating her from Lucas for the time being. Possibly forever, depending on what his condition turns out to be. Taking her away from him without so much as a goodbye.

Riley shakes her head frantically and walks up to the door, knocking hysterically and begging for her to let them in until Maya pulls her away. She collapses into her best friend, allowing her to pull her into a hug and losing her cool entirely.

The three of them stand in the hallway for a long moment, absorbing the shock as Riley's sobs fill the empty corridor. Feeling the absence of their usual fourth companion, just out of reach on the other side of the door.

* * *

It's two days before she receives Madam Pomfrey's owl. Two days of floating through her routine in a haze, mind numb and decidedly unfocused.

Slughorn gives her a redo on her disaster of a potion that week, allowing her a do over on the precedent of playing favorites but also clearly sensing her emotional state. Numerous classmates approach her to check if she's alright, and she has to resist the urge to direct them in the direction of the infirmary to ask that question to the boy who actually deserves to have people checking up on him.

No matter where she is, whether she's comfortably huddled in the confines of her dormitory or in the chaos of the great hall or deep down in the potions classroom, her mind and heart are stuck in the hospital wing with him. Guaranteeing a permanent vacation until she's able to rejoin them at his side.

When she receives the owl, she's at the hospital wing within minutes. Still half in her pajamas, hair undone, she stumbles into the infirmary searching for him without a second wasted. Madam Pomfrey seems far from surprised, greeting her with a gentle smile and guiding her towards his cot in the back corner of the wing.

It's disarming to see him appear so peaceful. Maybe partially because she feels like his expressions are always so intense regardless of the emotion they're conveying, but also because she feels so completely in disarray. She's falling apart at the seams over his condition and he's simply resting, content to remain just a handhold away from her for the unforeseeable future.

A few fractures in his forearm. A sprained elbow, appropriately wrapped and laying carefully against his torso. A few minor bruises and scrapes that will heal in no time. And then the coma, rendered upon him in a desperate attempt to save him from a much more brutal fate but potentially stranding him inside his own head for an indeterminate amount of time. No way to know if he'll come out of it or not.

Madam Pomfrey claims she's optimistic, considering a multitude of factors and statistics she rattles off that Riley doesn't understand. But no guarantee means no answers, and all Riley can see when she looks at the boy who was growing into quite possibly her favorite person is the reality that he might never wake up. He might always be just out of her reach, a million miles away in the one place she can never conceivably follow.

Either way, she knows she's going to be there by his side when the time comes. Whether he comes back around or they take him away, she's going to be with him until the end. So she gathers a bag and essentially stakes out the hospital wing full time, planted in the chair next to him from the moment the hospital wing opens each morning until Madam Pomfrey requests for her to depart each night.

She spends her afternoon sustaining herself off of magical sweets and greeting fellow visitors in between coursework. Zay, Smackle, and Maya make an effort to stop by once a day, and Jasmine is in more than a couple times hoping for good news. The rest of his team floats in and out now and again. Hagrid makes a point of visiting every couple of days, bringing Lucas an assortment of poorly baked but well-intentioned treats.

"Think he'll really enjoy this one when he comes around," he says, dropping what sounds like a brick on the small tray table at the foot of his bed. "Let's hope it's soon, yeah?"

Although she knows not everyone has the fortitude or obnoxious level of determination to rebuild their entire schedule around sitting vigil at bedside, Riley has to admit to herself she's a little bit surprised that Maya isn't around as often. She knows they're friends and she comes around a perfectly normal amount for that, but seeing as they did go to the Yule Ball together she thought Maya would be a rather consistent companion with her inside the walls of the hospital wing.

It's what she's thinking about as she's munching on a Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean and trying to work her way through a rather difficult Defense Against the Dark Arts paper. Lucas isn't helping, consistently diverting her attention from her parchment to gaze at him.

She supposes he's always been a horrible study partner—constantly distracting her or scribbling stupid messages into the margins of her notes or purposefully tickling her with the feather of his quill and sending her into giggles that get both of them shushed by the librarian. Even out of consciousness, he's remaining unabashedly in character.

She isn't sure why she can't stop looking at him. Perhaps because she's impatiently waiting for the moment he stirs, waking up and coming back to her in the blink of an eye. Perhaps because it's so odd to see him so at ease, expression soft and breathing even as he rests beside her. Or perhaps it's because she always seems to be looking at him, eyes finding him in any room at any time like magnetism.

The more she thinks about it, the more she realizes she does an awful lot of staring.

"It's official, Yancy is the absolute worst," Maya huffs, shattering the serene calm of the wing as she marches in from a long evening of Quidditch practice. Her book bag thumps against the handle of her broomstick as she walks. "Twenty points from Gryffindor because I was running in the hallway and tracking dirt through the corridors. Sorry this castle has no welcome mats. Quidditch practice is outside, what does he want from me?"

The resounding slam that both objects make as they hit the floor by Lucas's bedside is enough to catch the attention of Madam Pomfrey. She pokes her head out of her office like an owl, relaxing slightly when she sees the source of the hubbub.

"Oh, Miss Hart. It's only you."

"Lovely evening to you too, Poppy," Maya says, offering a salute before snagging a candy from the growing pile on Lucas's tray table and collapsing into the chair on his opposite side. She eyes him, taking a bite of the sweet before shifting her gaze to Riley. "Anything?"

Mustering a weak smile, Riley shakes her head. Always delivering the same news, despite how much everyone seems to be willing the answer to change.

Maya exhales, slouching further in her seat with a frown. She examines Lucas for a long moment, chewing her lip. "You know, it's just like him to be so dramatic. Making everyone wait for his grand return, and all that."

Riley rolls her eyes. "Oh, sure."

"I'm serious. I know he comes off all soft-spoken and sweet, but you would not believe how internally dramatic he is. You'd get it if you saw how he is in the common room sometimes. Maybe it's a late night thing, I don't know."

Riley feels her nerves bristle, a bit perturbed by the reminder that there's so much she misses between her best friends when they go off to their own common areas each evening. All the moments she's missing just because she's not bold or brave enough to be a Gryffindor, or whatever it is.

Or maybe, she's a little miffed that Maya clearly seems to know so much more about their beloved friend than she does. She has to admit that her attitude towards the sentiment is a little green.

"Come on, Huckleberry," Maya prompts, leaning forward and nudging his side. She jostles him playfully. "Get up, already!"

Riley frowns, slapping her hand away protectively. "Hey, be gentle."

She backs off accordingly, raising her eyebrows at the intensity of Riley's response. She raises her hands in surrender before crossing her arms over her chest, propping her feet up on the side of his cot and making herself smaller. "Jeez, Riles, no need to get so worked up. It's not like I'm gonna give him another fracture from poking him in the ribs."

She knows she's right. She's overreacting. But she doesn't feel like justifying herself right now.

Instead, she shrugs, turning her gaze back to her parchment. "I just think we should be careful with him, that's all. If we cared about him, we'd treat him with more respect. Even when he's not conscious."

"Okay," Maya says with an exhale, shifting upright. She props her elbows on her knees, leaning forward and waiting for Riley to meet her eyes. "What the hell is going on with you? What's the problem, honey?"

Riley blinks at her, glancing at their incapacitated friend. "What's the problem?"

"I mean, aside from the obvious," she clarifies, rolling her eyes. "You have been snippy for weeks, basically since we got back for spring term. Long before this added a whole other layer of issues."

"That is not true."

"Two weeks ago you literally got up and left dinner because I tugged Huckleberry's sweater and called him a dork for the five hundredth time since I've met him." Maya raises an eyebrow, leaning back and nodding indicatively. "You gonna tell me that's normal behavior?"

Riley knows the exact night she's talking about. She doesn't know why she got up and left—she's been used to Lucas and Maya's banter and teasing dynamic basically since they all met first year, and it's never bothered her before.

But suddenly, following the Yule Ball and how weird everything had gotten between the two of them, it just seemed like rubbing it in her face. How comfortable Maya and Lucas could continue to be when she couldn't even carry a conversation with him that didn't seem burdened by whatever was shifting around in their friendship she couldn't pinpoint.

All of that seems like far too much to explain, let alone if she could even figure out how to articulate it. So she offers another slight shrug, avoiding her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Okay, fine. Forget all that. Let's talk about the last few days. Every time I come to visit, you get all clammy and irritable. Which I get it, emotions are running high right now, but you're not like that in class. It's only when we're here, with him, that you seem to turn up the salt. So what's up with that?"

She doesn't know how to say it. She doesn't know how to explain all the things she's been feeling, how being here with him just seems to jumble up her emotions even more. All she knows is she feels like she's spending all her time here desperate for him to wake up, not knowing how she's going to keep going if he doesn't, and it seems like Maya couldn't care less.

"I just think someone as close to him as you should be around more, that's all."

Maya's brow furrows, obviously confused. She holds her arms out, tilting her chair onto its back legs. "I'm here, aren't I?"

"Yes. I just mean… considering the relationship you two have, I thought you'd be around more often. Or that you'd, I don't know—,"

"I'm here just as much as Zay or Smackle," Maya defends herself. She shakes her head, totally lost as to where Riley's annoyance is stemming from. "I don't know what else you're expecting me to do. Cry? Read him poetry?"

Riley clears her throat, not appreciating the mocking tone. "You don't have to get mean."

"I'm not being mean, Riles. You're not making any sense. I feel like you're expecting me to handle the situation exactly as you are, but that's not how stuff like this works. Of course I'm worried about him, but it's not like if I ask him to he'll just wake up. I'm not holding my breath."

"I just think, considering how I'm certainly managing the time to be here as much as possible, his girlfriend could put in the same effort."

The wing goes silent. Maya blinks at her, betraying nothing as tension builds between them like a tidal wave. Riley immediately regrets opening her mouth, wishing she could disappear behind her parchment and disappear into the lines of her essay on werewolf transformation.

"I'm sorry, his _what_?" Maya's giddy with laughter, but there's a layer of exasperation to the exclamation that makes it clear she's pushing her best friend's buttons. "You think I'm his what?"

Riley resents being talked down to so clearly. She sits up straighter, speaking confidently as to not be belittled. "You don't have to spare my feelings or whatever you guys are doing. I'm fine. I don't care. But seeing as you're always together and you went to the Yule Ball together—,"

"Oh my God, we're always together because we're in the same house and we're _friends_ ," Maya spits. "I'm not with Huckleberry. We're not _together_. Please, suggest anything more disturbing."

"But the Yule Ball—,"

"Is that supposed to mean anything? We went with each other because we had no one else to go with. It's not that deep. You went with Charlie, are you two dating?"

Riley opens her mouth, only to find no words come out. The fact of the matter is, she knows many people have been wondering that exact question, including Charlie himself. She's been avoiding the decision, not wanting to reject him but not exactly keen on dating him either. She loves having him as a classmate and friend, and she thinks he made a wonderful date to such an important Hogwarts tradition. Any girl would be lucky to have Charlie Gardner for a boyfriend.

But she knows that's not what she wants. What she wants, she isn't sure, but she knows it's not Charlie regardless of how wonderful he is. Her feelings for him have never been romantic. It's her fear of hurting his feelings that's keeping all of them in the dark.

Maya scoffs, grabbing her bag and beginning to gather her things. "Actually, the _real_ reason Ranger Rick and I went together is because we couldn't go with the people we wanted to because they had other plans. So to put it frankly, I'm not his girlfriend. I'm at best his second choice."

Riley feels the blush of shame crawling up her cheeks. She didn't mean for this to become a big mess, or to accuse her best friend of being so coldhearted. She knows Maya copes differently than she does and she knows she cares about her friends, including Lucas. Her emotions just got the better of her, as they seem to be doing a lot lately.

"Maya, I'm sorry—,"

"Can I give you a tip, honey?" She rises to her feet and swings her bag over her shoulder, swiveling to face her again. Although it's clear she's angry, she can tell that the intention behind her words isn't hurtful. Whatever she's about to say, she's saying it because she cares. "Maybe you should stop examining what you think I should be doing, and start examining yourself. Starting with why you care so much that Sundance and I went together in the first place."

Riley swallows, unable to look at her any longer. She dips her head down, twirling her quill anxiously between her fingertips.

Maya sighs, her tone softening. She thinks of saying something but thinks better of it, not sure what she could say to make the situation better. If Riley has a lot of things to figure out, she has to do it on her own. No amount of encouragement is going to get her to admit the truth until she's ready.

"Let me know if anything happens," Maya requests, casting one more glance towards Lucas before making her way out of the wing.

Riley watches her go, keeping her head down until her best friend closes the infirmary door behind her. Then she exhales a long sigh, slouching further in her seat and letting her gaze drift towards him again.

Too much to figure out. Too much to think about. Too much to ask for when all she wants is for him to be okay.

* * *

Two more days. No news. For how often her father tells her that no news is good news, she's starting to seriously resent it.

For as much as Riley would like to stay in the hospital wing every hour of the day, she does still have classes to attend so she doesn't let her own academics take a serious hit. It seems pointless considering her brain is absolutely useless and can only focus on one thing, but then in some ways she appreciates the normalcy it provides her. A sense of routine, a distraction even if it's mostly ineffective.

Besides, ever since her conversation with Maya, sitting vigil as Lucas's bedside has taken on a different meaning to her. She's grateful she and her best friend were able to talk it out and that she forgave her, but she can't forget the insinuations she made and now the other predicament eating up her mental sanity when she's impatiently waiting for him to wake up is wondering why she cares so damn much in the first place.

Of course, she knows she would care deeply if any of her friends ended up in this situation. Even still, without Maya having to spell it out for her she knows this is the worst case scenario. When it comes down to it, Lucas is the one she cares about the most.

Naturally, that means it has to hurt the most too.

When her father wraps a particularly boring lecture in History of Magic and her Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff classmates make a beeline for the door, Riley takes her time gathering her things. She's not in any rush except to get back to the hospital wing. She knows Lucas isn't exactly waiting with bated breath for her arrival.

Cory approaches her desk, tapping her on the top of the head affectionately to get her attention. "How you doing, kiddo?"

"The same," she says, managing what she knows is a weak smile. It seems that so long as Lucas's condition remains unchanged, so does her mood.

Cory frowns, obviously wishing he could remedy the situation. If the solution were as simple as waving his wand and making it so, she knows he'd do it in a heartbeat like any good father.

But not every problem has a simple, achievable solution. Even for the best teacher and father she knows.

"Are you going to visit him now?" he asks, already knowing the answer. When she nods, he gestures her to follow him with a nod. "Come on, I'll give you some copies to give him so he doesn't fall too behind."

"Dad, we don't even know if he's going to—," Riley cuts herself off, not wanting to finish the sentence. Because if she says it out loud, it feels like speaking it into existence, so it's easier to just cover her ears and keep her mouth shut. Denial for as long as she can possibly manage it. "When he wakes up, I doubt his first concern is going to be History of Magic."

"Well, just in case."

Riley makes her way over to the front of the classroom, pausing by his desk as he gathers papers from the last couple of lectures. As he shuffles things around on his desk, he moves a pile of essays from his Gryffindor class towards the edge. The one underneath the top catches her eye, the familiar scrawl jumping out at her and demanding her attention.

Gently, she tugs the parchment out from the pile to get a better look at it.

 _Lucas Friar. History of Magic. Formation of the Ministry…_

It's surreal to see his handwriting, to hold work he just recently turned in at her fingertips and remember that he exists outside the hospital wing. As encompassing as it's been in the last week, there was a time before the accident, and time will inevitably march on without them regardless of what happens to him when all is said and done.

"Has Madam Pomfrey said anything new?" Cory asks, snapping her out of her trance. She pushes his paper back with the rest, tearing her eyes from it and clearing her throat.

She shakes her head. "Just more about the spell and it's possible consequences. How even though it saved it his life, it's unclear to know how it's affecting his consciousness, or whatever."

"Believe me, I know the risks."

"I don't, really," Riley huffs, keeping her head down so she doesn't have to look him in the eyes. She doesn't want to be any more dramatic than she feels she already has been, but she's so sick of how uncertain and confusing everything about the situation is. How nobody seems to have any answers, even the people who are supposed to understand it. "I don't get how something that was meant to save his life can have such disastrous consequences. Madam Pomfrey is always muttering under her breath about how the caster should've been more thoughtful, or seriously considered the risks—,"

"I did consider them."

Riley hesitates, lifting her gaze to lock eyes with him. She feels her heart catch in her throat.

Cory glances at her, then averts his eyes. He focuses on finishing collecting the necessary papers for Lucas, but it's clear his mind is elsewhere. "I know the risks of the spell. Doing that kind of magic, especially in such a high-stakes situation… there are risks. But there was no time to think. It was cast the spell that I thought could potentially soften the blow, or do nothing and watch one of my students fall to his death."

"It was you. You cast the slowing charm."

Cory sighs, closing his eyes and reigning in his emotions. Having a difficult time keeping them together, as everyone seems to be these days.

"I'm sorry that it's unfolding this way. I'm sorry that there's not more I can do." He eyes her tentatively, obviously expecting her to be upset with him. "I'm—,"

Riley interrupts his apology, coming around the side of the desk and barreling him with a hug. She feels tears prick the corners of her ears, screwing her eyes shut and inhaling a deep breath as the reality of the situation really sinks in.

It was her father who cast the charm. It was her father who ultimately saved her favorite person's life, regardless of what happens next.

"Thank you," she whimpers. She tightens the embrace, hoping it translates how grateful she is.

After a moment, Cory wraps his arms around her and returns the hug. Considering how much effort she's being exerting to keep herself upright, it's nice to remember that she's not alone. That she has people who will share in the burden, and hold her up when she's feeling too weak to do it on her own.

"Any time."

* * *

As Lucas's time in comatose stretches into a week, Riley starts to feel tied to the hospital wing. Although she's always there by choice, the hopelessness of an unchanging status quo is starting to take an emotional toll. She finds herself wondering how many more days she'll be spending in this same chair by this same bedside, if there's a limit for how long he can stay. If days will stretch into weeks, then years.

She can't stomach the thought of leaving Hogwarts in their seventh year, coming back to this hospital wing to visit the boy who is never going to graduate with them. The piece of her heart that's trapped in his head with him, wherever exactly that is.

Farkle assures her that such a possibility is far from logical, whether or not he wakes up. Even if he never does, they'll remove him from Hogwarts before too long and likely send him somewhere for safekeeping, like St. Mungo's. The thought doesn't bring her much additional peace.

In all honestly, it's more surprising to her that Farkle shows up to visit at all. He comes more than a couple times in the span of the week, always bringing along a convenient excuse like homework from potions or a snack for Riley from the Great Hall. He's definitely not there to see if Lucas's condition has improved—they're rivals, after all. He'd never do such a thing.

When Riley points out that Zay already brought his potions coursework the fourth time he comes by, Farkle waves her off.

"Well, best he not fall too far behind," he sputters, flicking his bangs out of his eyes. "I brought some of my notes for him to study by if he needs them." He pauses, remembering he's supposed to have something snarky to say. "When he comes around, he can owe me one."

It's announced that first Saturday after the accident that due to the circumstances, Gryffindor team does in fact forfeit the match, giving Hufflepuff the championship. Her classmates are overjoyed, celebrating their first championship win in over ten years.

Maya is practically foaming at the mouth about it, coming to vent in the hospital wing. Not for her, Riley knows, but because Lucas is the exact person she would be having this conversation with if he were conscious. That he would be ranting and grumbling right alongside her, bonding over one of the few things they can seem to agree on were he not the reason they had to forfeit in the first place.

Jasmine comes by as well to talk in hushed whispers with Madam Pomfrey, obviously assessing his condition and curious as to if there's any update on his prognosis. If he'll be better soon, and if it's looking like he'll be able to play come the new season in the fall. Riley bites her tongue and tries to block out the noise, disgusted at how concerned people seem with a stupid game over the well-being of her favorite person.

In some ways, she figures its best that he's out of commission while all of this is occurring. The moment he finds out that they had to forfeit the championship match because of him, she knows he's never going to forgive himself.

Anyway, she hates Quidditch. She hates it, she hates it, she hates it.

In spite of all of the cheering and rejoicing the Hufflepuff house gets to do throughout the weekend over their victory, Riley spends all of it cooped up in the hospital wing. Thankful for the quiet, happy to be spending her time with her friend rather than in the overwhelming mess the common room is bound to be for the next few hours.

As it stands, she's found ways to make the scenario enjoyable. She finds herself starting conversations with him, still feeling some of the catharsis she's always felt talking to him even though he's not exactly able to respond. She tells him all about how the week is going, works through homework assignments with him, keeps him up to date on all the latest gossip. Not that she very well knows much of it herself, but it's nice to pretend he's listening. It's nice to pretend, even for a moment, that he's perfectly fine and everything is normal.

Somehow, Charlie manages to escape the parades of praise he's sure to be receiving in the common room to pay a visit to the hospital wing. He comes by late that night when most of the other students are bound to be gone, Riley the only friend still dedicated—or desperate, maybe—enough to hang around. She's just finishing up telling Lucas about their current assignment in Divination and the odd dream Farkle's been trying to pick apart with limited success when he comes through the door, spotting them in the back of the wing and jogging his way over.

"Charlie," Riley says blankly, honestly shocked to see him. "What are you doing here?"

He offers her a smile, perfectly charming as always. "Thought I'd come by to see how you were doing. Both of you," he says offhandedly, nodding to Lucas. He points to the chair opposite her, a little out of breath. "Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all," she says cordially, gesturing for him to sit. He does, collapsing into it and taking a moment to collect himself.

Absorbing the sanctity of the quiet, much in the same way she does.

"Hectic in the common room, I'm guessing."

Charlie shrugs, clasping his hands together on his lap. "Everyone's excited. That's always fun. Especially since it's been ten years—I mean, first championship since we started here. That's amazing. But yeah, a bit overwhelming."

He pauses, glancing towards the boy lying unconscious between them. He swallows, frowning lightly.

"Wish it were under better circumstances," he admits.

Riley nods. Grateful he said what she's been thinking since the match was cancelled a week ago.

"I wanted to tell you, actually," he says, unable to hold back the proud beam that's creeping onto his face. He's practically bouncing in his seat, excitement clear from his tone. "I just found out they've pinned me to be captain next year when Meyer graduates. Like, he wants me to take on the team. He just told me like fifteen minutes ago."

Although she doesn't feel particularly moved either way, she manages a smile. Happy that he's so happy, that he's earning some of the recognition he most certainly deserves considering how hard he works to be a model student for their house. "That's amazing, Charlie. Congratulations."

"Thanks. I know you don't care much about Quidditch, but I don't know. I just really wanted to tell you."

He's truly so sweet. He's so sweet, and wonderfully genuine, and Riley is so incredibly fond of him. He's a dear friend, one she feels lucky to have met through her placement by the Sorting Hat nearly four years ago.

"Speaking of next year," he says, less confident than moments ago. He locks his fingers together, knee bouncing anxiously as he locks eyes with her. "I was thinking maybe we should talk. About… about what we're going to be, exactly."

Instinctively, Riley glances to Lucas before clearing her throat. She smiles apologetically. "Charlie, I don't know if this is really the best time—,"

"It never is," Charlie points out, knowing all too well how deftly Riley has avoided any decision-making on their potential relationship status. "There's never going to be a good time. So I'd rather just clear the air, here and now, rather than continue to drag this on any longer. Can we just do that? Can we be honest with each other, please?"

For how dreadful the situation feels, she can see in his eyes that he's not upset with her. Far from it. He's simply asking for exactly what he requested—honesty. He wants to clear the air and figure out where they stand before he gets ready to march into fifth year.

Riley hesitates, composing her thoughts and choosing her words carefully. Not wanting to say anything that may come off harsher than she intends. "You are an amazing friend, Charlie. Like, I'm so glad we got to meet and become friends. You're wonderful, and charming, and gifted in a whole number of fields."

He blushes, brushing some hair from his forehead. "I don't know about that."

"You are. All of those things, and more. Modest, too, which I love about you."

A hushed silence passes as Riley pauses, collecting her thoughts and reluctant to turn this conversation into anything deeper than what it is currently. But then she glances to Lucas again, ruminates all the thinking she's done the past week. Knowing that if he were in her situation, as brave as he is, he'd face the situation head on. Knowing, deep in her heart, that she owes this conversation to him too.

"But I don't think… I'm not sure I care about you the way you'd like me to. Or frankly, the way you deserve." She can see the glimmer of disappointment flash through his features, followed by resignation. Like he knew it was coming, but the blow still stings regardless. "It's not that I don't care about you. I do. I love you, just—,"

"Just not enough," Charlie fills in for her, avoiding her eyes and keeping his gaze on the floor. "Yeah. Yeah, that's what I figured."

Riley bites the inside of her cheek, not wanting to say anything to make it worse. "I don't know why. I should like you. If I were smart, I definitely would."

"Maybe," Charlie laughs, smiling to himself. He clears his throat, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. "But then, I'm not the one you're sitting vigil at bedside for, huh?"

She doesn't understand how he could possibly make such a bold reading of her, particularly one that's so pointedly accurate. They're friends and all, but they've never discussed her friendship with Lucas. She doesn't see how everyone can seem to have her dynamic with him all figured out when she feels as though she doesn't even understand it herself.

Maybe she's simply been taking it for granted, the simplicity and ease with which she and Lucas fit together in the context of her life. Everyone else has been looking at it and formulating explanations for the last four years, and she's just now starting to take a second look.

"It's fine," Charlie exhales, more to himself than her. He manages a smile, rising to his feet. "Thanks for being honest with me, Riley. And being… well, whatever you were to me. And whatever we'll be now."

She truly is so lucky to have him. He's being so kind about all of this, so understanding, which she knows is a rare breed. She gives him a smile, one of the most genuine ones she's mustered all week.

He casts one more glance at Lucas, expression shifting into something a bit more subdued. He swallows, tilting his head and looking to her again. "When he wakes up, you let me know, yeah?"

She smiles wider, nodding in agreement. Charlie nods back before spinning on his heel, swinging his arms as he awkwardly heads out of the wing and leaves her alone again. Back to her solitude, vigilantly waiting for a boy who may never come back to her.

Charlie's already thinking about the future, next year, and she's still caught in last week. Wondering if she'll ever get to move past this frozen state of mind, but imagining it'll be near impossible without him being there with her.

Gently, she reaches out and takes his hand laying on the blankets. It's colder than usual, than it should be, and she decides she's going to have to hold it a lot more to make sure he retains his characteristic warmth. To distract herself from the now she allows herself to daydream about the future, the good version where he does wake up and they head into fifth year and everything proceeds as normal.

Well, maybe a little bit different. Now that the idea is in her head, she's starting to consider what other possibilities lay out there for the two of them.

"Whatever we'll be," she murmurs, running her thumb softly across the back of his hand.

* * *

Two days following the official week anniversary of the accident, Riley overhears Madam Pomfrey discussing the possibility of a transfer to St. Mungo's with Professor McGonagall.

She doesn't think it'll happen right away, or any time soon, but the fact that the notion has been seriously brought up at all sends a chill down Riley's spine. She eavesdrops as they list the potential reasons for making the switch, most notably that him being here in this state may be distressing for other students and it would give him the chance to be somewhere more adept to handle his situation. Where family could be nearby.

Riley doesn't think they realize that Lucas is more at home here at Hogwarts than he would be anywhere else. She knows his parents don't give much of a damn about their only son, hence why he showed up to the Hogwarts Express alone first year and didn't understand how to get through the barrier until her mother explained it to him. It's the reason he had to defer a year, as his father destroyed his first letter and hasn't spent a dime trying to keep up with him since he left. It's why he spends summers and holidays house-hopping as much as he can, spending as much time with his friends in a time that's supposed to be joyful as he possibly can.

He's already with family. His family is here, Maya and Zay and Smackle. His teammates on the Gryffindor team, his friends from the dormitory. Riley herself, who will protest the transfer with everything she's got in her if necessary. If she has to stage a student protest, she'll figure out a way.

Otherwise, business continues on as normal. She spends an increasingly disproportionate amount of time in the hospital wing, practically a resident herself. Madam Pomfrey stops making her leave when the wing closes for the night, knowing well enough that she'll help herself out when she's ready and that she always locks the door securely. To make up for it, Riley starts helping tend to sick students when Madam Pomfrey requires it. It's the least she can do, and she doesn't mind the work.

Riley finds herself dozing off more than a couple times by his bedside, Josh being the one to wake her up both times it happens. He's always bringing her a pick-me-up from the Great Hall or a butterbeer straight from Hogsmeade, doing homework with her to keep her company.

She's grateful for the courtesy, especially considering Josh feels like the only person with whom she can discuss the full extent of her feelings for Lucas as she unpacks them. He always listens without judgment, and rather than telling her what he thinks she should do, he guides her through questions that help her figure out decisions for herself.

All she knows by the time they're nearing on ten days since the accident is that nothing about her feelings for Lucas Friar are simple. She's been convincing herself they're just friends for so long, finally acknowledging that the opposite might be true seems like a groundbreaking revelation. One shocking enough to wake him from his slumber, if only he were conscious to hear her mutter it in the nights where she's the only one still around.

That night, Riley is surprised when Madam Pomfrey comes to say goodnight and brings her a piping cup of hot chocolate. She takes it delicately, smiling bashfully. "You didn't need to do this."

"Sure I did," Poppy states, waving her off gently. "Amount of time you spend here, helping me out. It's the least I could do."

Riley beams, taking a sip of the warm beverage. Both of them linger in the silence, watching Lucas rest so reliably. Clearly taking his time enjoying the dreamscape, whatever it's like.

"Is it true," Riley murmurs, taking another sip before looking up at the nurse. "Are they going to send him to Mungo's?"

Madam Pomfrey gives her a sympathetic look, clasping her hands together in front of her. "I don't know, dear. Not any time soon, certainly. But if his conditions continues to remain the same…"

Riley nods, not needing any further explanation. She figures ignorance is bliss in the case of the ticking clock that seems to have appeared over them.

"Make sure to lock up," Poppy requests, giving her one more tired smile before heading to her office to retire for the evening.

Riley watches her go, taking another long drink of the hot chocolate before setting it on the nightstand. She glances towards the tray table at the end of his bed, at the assembly of coursework, candy, and other well wishes that have accumulated over the last week and a half.

Sighing, she lets her gaze drift to him.

"You know, so many people have come by to see you," she says softly, scooting her chair closer to his cot. She pulls her legs up onto the chair and wraps her arms around them, propping her chin on her knees. "I wish you would wake up just so you could see them. You'd never believe so many people care about you, even if I tell you later. You're so stubbornly humble that way."

Naturally, he doesn't respond. Although it's been painful, seeing him so unresponsive for so many days straight, she has to admit how lovely it is to see his expression so relaxed. She supposes if anything good comes of this, it'll be that he's finally gotten to rest as much as he deserves.

Riley tilts her head, an ache forming in her chest when she realizes how much she misses him. Not simply his physical being, considering she's spent all ten days with that an abnormal amount, but his actual presence. His soft green eyes and his silly grin and the musically familiar sound of his voice.

All the time in the hospital wing, it seems she's developed an illness of her own. The distinctly sickening sensation of having him so close, yet so impossibly far away.

"They're talking about sending you to Mungo's," she whispers, still harboring that irrational fear that speaking such things aloud might will them into existence. She swallows, trying to keep her voice even. "I understand why they're considering it, but it wouldn't be the right choice. I know it wouldn't. Because I know you. You'd want to be here."

She sighs, closing her eyes and pressing her forehead to her knee.

"I want you here."

The silence feels heavier than usual tonight. She misses the way silence used to be between them, a rare sort of comfortable quiet she's never been able to replicate with anyone else.

Lifting her head again, she gazes at him before dropping her feet back onto the floor. She leans forward on her elbows against the mattress, taking his hand in hers.

"I need you to show them that you don't need to be transferred," she says, enveloping his hand in both of hers. She blinks the fresh tears out of her eyes, willing herself to be stronger than she is. Hoping maybe some of that resolve will transform into power for him to use to come back to her. "I need you to wake up so that they don't take you away."

Riley knows it's not going to do any good. All of her pleading isn't going to make a difference at the end of the day. Still, maybe it will do the reverse of her greatest fear—maybe, if she says it enough, she can will it into reality.

She lets her chin rest against his hand in hers, lightly pressing her lips to his knuckles.

"Whatever happens next, I want you to be here."

It strikes her how exhausted she is. All of this emotional labor over such an extended period of time, it's a wonder she's not currently occupying a cot of her own. Considering how little sleep she gets back at the dormitory, it should be much worse.

Riley scoots as close as she can get, leaning forward and resting her head on his torso. She brings his hand to drape around her shoulders so she won't accidentally hurt it by laying on top of it, linking their fingers together and releasing a sigh. After a few moments of the increasingly familiar ambience of the hospital wing quiet, she lets her eyes flutter closed.

There's nowhere else she'd rather be. That much she knows.

* * *

"Riley?"

At first, she thinks she's dreaming. The voice is enough to startle her awake, but she's still pointedly drowsy and half-asleep. Sun is filtering in through the curtains of the windows, letting in daylight and indicating she's been dozing off here far longer than she anticipated.

She had to have made it up. It's wishful thinking, the kind of stuff only her dreams could promise.

Then, she feels the gentle movement of his arm on her shoulder, nudging her. She blinks wide awake, holding her breath out of nerves and waiting for the other shoe to drop that'll inevitably snap her out of this dream.

Instead, she hears it again. That voice, her favorite voice in the world.

"Riley."

She pushes herself onto her elbows, hair disheveled and muscles aching from laying in such an awkward position for so many hours. Not sure she'll believe what she sees, she whips her head to face him.

She's not dreaming. It's those green eyes, dizzyingly pretty, gazing back at her like he can't believe she's there. Like he's the one who should be surprised.

When she exhales, she feels like she's releasing the weight of the world. "Lucas."

"Hi."

"Merlin's beard!" she exclaims breathlessly, reaching forward and pulling him into a bone-crushing hug. She places a frantic kiss to the side of his head, already feeling tears slip down her cheeks. A strangled laugh conveys just how overwhelmed with emotion she feels from the sound of his voice. "You're okay. You're here."

"Yeah," he says weakly, wincing at the tightness of her embrace. "Ouch."

"Sorry, sorry," she says apologetically, pulling back from the hug and giggling in spite of herself. It's such a relief to see his smile, tired as it might be. She can't bring herself to let go of him, keeping a hand on his shoulder and resisting the urge to pinch him so she knows he's real. "How are you feeling? Are you okay?"

He hums uncertainly, closing his eyes and scrunching his face. It has to be the cutest thing in the whole wizarding world, considering how it makes her chest tighten. "Sore. Feel like I haven't moved in days."

If he only knew. If he only had a clue.

"What happened?" He looks to her expectantly, expression a combination of nerves and curiosity. She doesn't even know where to begin. "What happened with the game? Did we win?"

She doesn't want to talk about Quidditch right now. She doesn't want to talk about anything. She just wants to revel in the fact that he's alive—that he's alive and he's going to be okay and he's back with her. Everything else can wait.

"Let's just wait until Madam Pomfrey wakes up, okay? She'll fill you in with everything you need to know, I promise."

"Okay," he say agreeably, clearly not up for being stubborn.

Riley can't help but grin, putting aside her hesitancy to reach forward and fix his hair. Somehow the touch becomes a gentle caress, softly brushing her thumb against his cheekbone.

She can't believe he's back. She's so grateful he's okay.

"How are you even in here before she's up anyway?" he asks, reclining back deeper into his pillow and fidgeting restlessly. It's so nice to see that fidgeting again. He doesn't question her touch on his face. "I thought visitors weren't allowed this early."

"Well, I've never been quite like everybody else, have I?" she says vaguely, preferring to keep things simple while it lasts.

Lucas narrows his eyes at her, playfully making a show of thinking about it. "Nope. Definitely not."

She continues to talk with him in soft voices, keeping him awake until Madam Pomfrey arrives to the pleasant surprise of his renewed consciousness about an hour or so later. This launches them back into the real world, full of plans on what to do next and alerting other friends and beginning the uncomfortable discussions of what he's missed and what he has to make up and all the unfortunate decisions that have unfolded in his absence.

She's going to be there for all of it. Every step of the way, she's not planning to leave his side. She's done a damn good job of it so far, and if she's realized anything over the last ten days it's that she's done taking what she has for granted. She's always loved him, treated him as best as she knew how and cherished his friendship, but now she's ready to admit she might want more than that.

It's all things to explore in the future, which is once again theirs to explore. Whatever they'll be.


	3. i want to hold your hand

**A/N:** more on the girl meets hogwarts au can be found on my blog under tagged/gmw-hp-au !

* * *

 **YEAR 1**

The first time they hold hands, they barely know each other.

Sure, Riley Matthews knows of Lucas Friar, and he knows of her. They've exchanged greetings, introduced themselves, brought together by their mutual friendship with Maya. They could pick each other out in a crowd no sweat—it's hard to forget the face of someone you nearly ran over during your first week of classes. Riley doesn't think she could ever forget his kindness in a situation that could've easily ruined her already stressful first week. Lucas doesn't think he could ever forget how bright her eyes are.

But aside from the occasional smile as they pass on the staircase or a brief wave from their table as they sit down for breakfast in the great hall, Riley and Lucas don't see much of each other. It's sort of the casualty of being in different houses, especially in first year when you're already drowning attempting to figure out where everything is and where you belong. When the sorting hat plops on your head and tells you which table to sit at and what friends to make on that first night in the great hall, you sure as hell listen.

Still, Riley spends half of her time at the Hufflepuff table staring longingly at the table just a few feet away, wishing she was sitting with her best friend and her new classmates wearing their deep red uniforms with pride.

What she isn't so proud of is how her best friend gets into trouble, and so often drags her along with her. Despite being in different houses and supposedly less vulnerable to Maya's shenanigans, it's Riley who is caught with her sneaking around to explore the castle after hours, earning them a swift detention.

Lucas's actions to earn punishment are far less tame, getting caught in a fight with a couple of older Slytherin students making fun of the newly minted first years with less than pure blood status. Zay gets himself detention for cheering him on, having his back as only a new best friend can, and together the two of them make their way down the lawn towards the groundskeeper hut as the sun begins to set below the horizon line.

"I just don't see why we have detention and those Slytherin jerks don't," Zay says angrily, his poorly-done tie bouncing loosely around his neck as he hops down the slabs of concrete towards the grounds. "You'd think calling someone names based on their blood status would warrant a corporal punishment or two. Or disciplinary action."

Lucas shrugs, preferring not to think about it. "Maybe they just don't care."

"If I were headmaster, I'd feed them to the squid."

"Pretty sure that's child abuse."

"If you don't have something nice to say, don't say it, lest you be dinner for our lovely lake companion." Zay grins mischievously. "I think it would be a convincing incentive."

They come to stop just outside the hut, surprised to find another student already waiting awkwardly by the gated-off creature pen. She's tiny and bespectacled, practically swimming in her dark robes that seem a couple sizes too big. She's familiar to Lucas—one of the students in their Charms class who always has her hand in the air to answer a question. The blue crest of Ravenclaw stitched onto her clothes confirms the association.

"Hey," he greets her as they approach. "Smackle, right?"

Her eyes shoot up from staring at her feet, wide with surprise at being addressed. "That would be my name, yes. Do I know you?"

"We have Charms together. I'm Lucas. This is Zay."

Zay nods distractedly, looking around her at the pen to see if he can spot any creatures. Smackle squints at them, obviously trying to recognize them from her memories of the first couple of weeks of class.

"It's okay if you don't recognize us," Zay assures her, climbing onto the gate and craning his neck to see around the hut. "You're up there in the front answering questions and being smart and stuff. We're back of the class kids. You don't turn around much."

"Yeah, speaking of, what are you doing here?" Lucas stuffs his hands in his pockets. "This is where we're meeting the groundskeeper for detention."

Smackle sighs, pushing some hair behind her ear nervously. "Well, then it is a relief to know I am in the right place. I, too, am awaiting detention."

Zay nearly falls off the fence, scrambling back to them and running into Lucas. "You? Detention? What the hell did you do to get detention? Annoy a professor to death?"

Lucas shoots Zay a warning glare, but Smackle doesn't think anything of his comment. She makes an irritated face, clasping her hands together in front of her. "No. I got into a disagreement with another student in History of Magic."

"In Matthews' class? About what?"

"I merely tried explaining that he was wrong about the Goblin Rebellions. But he decided he knew more than me, so we got into a heated debate over the longevity of the conflicts and whether they actually ended in the seventeenth century or the eighteenth century. Suffice to say, we got a little out of hand and Professor Matthews had to intervene."

"Imagine caring that much about history," Zay mutters.

"Speak of the self-titled genius himself," Smackle grumbles, nodding behind them at the lawn.

Lucas looks over his shoulder to find three more students heading towards them across the grass. The boy, who he figures must be who Smackle is referring to, is wearing Slytherin green under his black robes and walking with obvious self-importance. He carries himself impressively well for someone sporting a mop-top of brown hair and standing shorter than the two girls walking behind him.

The girls, on the other hand, are very familiar. Maya gives them a nod as they approach, nudging her best friend into tossing them a nervous wave.

"Great, a Slytherin," Zay says flatly, scowling as the three of them join them at the base of the hut. Although he didn't let it show, Lucas can tell the comments from the older students hurt Zay more than he'd like to admit. "How'd you manage to get detention? I thought Slytherins were immune to consequences of any kind around here."

The Slytherin boy shrugs nonchalantly, training his attention on the petite Ravenclaw between them. "Smackle."

"Farkle," she spits, standing a little straighter. "I must admit, I'm impressed you decided to honor your punishment and show up."

"Please," he says. "Farkle doesn't disrespect his elders, even when they're incorrect."

"Why is he talking in the third person?"

Maya steps around the rivaling geniuses to stand between her Gryffindor chums, Riley trailing along shyly behind her. "Fancy meeting you guys here."

"Yeah, we could say the same thing," Lucas says curiously. Noticing the anxiety in Riley's features as she looks at the ominous forest behind them, he searches for something to say to distract her. "Hey."

She blinks, a bit surprised. But the smile that forms on her lips is grateful. "Hi."

Although it seemed like a good idea at first, Lucas regrets saying anything at all considering he has no idea what to say next. "Hi."

"What are you guys doing here?" Zay asks, throwing Lucas a life preserver. "Riley, I can't believe you'd ever get detention."

She shrugs bashfully, elbowing her best friend pointedly. "She got me here. She made this big stink of exploring the castle after hours and I'm a chump and decided to go with her."

"She's loyal to the bone," Maya says proudly. "A Hufflepuff through and through."

"I can't believe that."

"What, that we'd go exploring after hours?"

"No," Zay snaps. "That you'd go exploring after hours and not invite me!"

His complaints are cut short as the door to the hut slams open and from the depths emerges an enormous man, much larger and hairier than anyone they've ever seen before. Despite his size and intimidating features, his eyes are kind and the friendly smile shrouded in his beard conveys a sense of security to whatever situation they're about to enter.

Riley decides that size is no determination of power—she's much more intimidated by Smackle than the giant gamekeeper standing before them. Lucas decides he wants to know everything about him.

"If I'm counting right, looks like we're all set to go," he says cheerfully. "Got to admit to you all, it's been a while since I took a crowd of first years for detention. Why don't you introduce yerselves before we get going here?"

They go around the circle exchanging names. After each introduction, the gamekeeper gives a welcoming smile and nod. It's reassuring enough that suddenly, Riley is sure that whatever they're going to be spending detention doing couldn't be so bad.

"Nice to make yer acquaintances. I'm Rubeus Hagrid, gamekeeper, groundskeeper, and professor. Teach Care of Magical Creatures, but you all likely haven't heard of that one yet. Won't be relevant to you 'til you're coming up on being third years."

"Hagrid," Lucas says slowly, recognition coloring his features. Riley notices the way his eyes light up. It's the first time she's really looked—she realizes they're green. "I've read about you. Harry Potter talks about you all the time."

A knowing smile crosses over Hagrid's face. "A fan of Harry Potter, are ya?"

Lucas hesitates, a blush crawling up his cheeks. "I've read about him. A little."

"Well, I'm a fan of Harry, too. Great wizard, great man. A great friend, above all else. Sure I've got a story or two you'd be interested in."

"Do you have any stories about Ginny Weasley?" Maya pipes up, eyes wide with excitement. She's practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. "She's like, the raddest Quidditch player in the history of the game. She's so fierce."

Hagrid gives her an amused look. "Tell you what. How about you all come down for a spot of tea sometime? That'll be much more proper for a conversation such as this. For now, we've got nasty business to attend to."

Riley swallows nervously. Farkle rolls his eyes, presumably at the Gryffindor worship.

Hagrid begins to lead the way around the pen, the six of them nearly jumping out of their skin when a large hound comes bounding out of the hut behind them, barking loudly and trotting to catch up to his owner. He's obviously aged, fur drooping a bit and stride a little wobbily, but he prances along with them with the enthusiasm of a newborn pup.

Lucas grins, jogging forward to keep up with the gamekeeper and his dog. "Is he friendly?"

"Oh, Fang? He's just the friendliest mutt you'll ever meet," Hagrid says fondly. "Bit of a barm, but he's the best companion I coulda hoped for. Getting a little old, though, as you can probably tell."

"Excuse me, Mister Hagrid, sir," Farkle says loudly from the middle of the pack. "But what exactly are we going to be doing? Our curfew goes into effect in a couple of hours, and the sun has already set. It's not very smart of us to be wandering around in the dark, especially right outside the forest."

Hagrid lets out a booming laugh. "If that's the way you're thinking, then you're not going to like what I have to say next."

"Oh my God," Zay gasps, an impish grin spreading across his face. "The forest? Are we gonna go in the—?"

"The Forbidden Forest?" Farkle squawks, staring at Zay in disbelief before turning his sneer up towards the gamekeeper leading the parade. "We can't go in there! It's Forbidden. It's literally in the title. And students aren't allowed."

"Oh, boy, do you remind me of someone," Hagrid mutters under his breath. Still, his tone is pleasant. "That's indeed where we're headed today. It's been a while since I led a detention in these woods, but the forest has become much safer since those days."

He doesn't elaborate, but all of them know what he's referring to. They've heard the stories of the second wizarding war, and the dangers Voldemort once posed to the castle and the wizarding world at large. There's a reason Harry Potter is a household name.

Riley shivers, thinking about a half-formed evil wizard slinking along the forest floor. She's grateful she doesn't have to worry about it.

Farkle has different concerns. "But what about the spiders? And what if we see a centaur, how do we engage with them without getting attacked? What about—," Farkle pauses, lowering his voice to a whisper and gulping. "Werewolves?"

"Should we meet a centaur, you engage with 'em the same way you'd engage with any of the other folks walking with us right now. But don't get all worked up. No one and nothing is gonna bother yeh as long as yeh stick with me or Fang here."

Farkle looks as though he wants to argue, but he decides against it. Zay gives him a smug look, jogging to keep up with Lucas and Hagrid.

Riley has to admire the way Lucas plunges forward into the darkness of the forest with seemingly no trepidation at all. He doesn't seem scared by anything, really—he approaches the terrifying things with fascination rather than fear. She thinks maybe she could learn a thing or two from him.

When they get just inside the tree line, Hagrid turns around and examines the six of them, gesturing an invisible line down the middle. He points to Farkle, Zay, and Maya. "You three, you're going to come with me. The rest of yeh, take Fang and stick together. We're going to be doing a patrol of the outer ring of the forest, make sure everything is in check. Then, we'll meet at the spider cove and head back together."

Farkle's jaw drops. "We're splitting up?"

"We can't split up," Zay argues, suddenly a little less smug than before. He drifts closer to Lucas, staring at the inky blackness of the woods around them. "You should at least keep the Gryffindors together. Triple bravery, right?"

"Oh, come now," Hagrid says jubilantly, patting Zay's shoulder bracingly. It's enough to make him stumble slightly, in the opposite direction of his best friend. "It's easy work, and it'll be done before yeh know it. Could be worse. Could be cleaning the trophy case using snail slime."

Zay tosses Lucas a frown as he's led to the left, starting their patrol. Maya waves dramatically to Riley as she follows their lead.

Smackle squints into the darkness, calling after Hagrid anxiously. "How are we supposed to know which way to go?"

"Fang'll lead the way! He knows this forest better than I do!"

"What?" Farkle shrieks, his concern being the last thing they hear before their friends disappear further into the forest.

After a few seconds of hesitation Riley propels their trio to move forward, Lucas and Fang taking the lead and Smackle trailing along behind with her. The longer they spend in the trees, the more Riley convinces herself that there's nothing to worry about. If Lucas can march through the forest as if there's nothing to be afraid of, then so can she.

"Did you know the forest hosts quite the array of creatures?" Smackle asks, spouting trivia in an attempt to hide her nerves. "Bowtruckles, for one, but they're very hard to spot. They blend in with the foliage, you see, so we'd be better off watching where we step. According to _Fantastic Beasts_ , they can be quite dangerous when threatened."

Riley keeps an eye out for Lucas's red tie in the darkness, hoping not to let him and Fang get too far ahead. "Well, I'm sure almost getting stepped on would count as a threat."

"Certainly. There's also supposedly a mysteriously enchanted car that runs rampant, but there are conflicting stories as to its origin. My father seems to think it's a myth, but he's a Muggle so I'm not sure he's the one to ask. My only wonder is how does such a contraption not run out of gas? Especially after a decade or so running free?"

Fang barks loudly from somewhere ahead, grabbing Riley's attention and snapping her out of her trance in listening to Smackle lecture. It suddenly occurs to her that there's no red easily in sight, Lucas and Fang having disappeared as soon as the barking ceased.

So much for nothing to worry about.

"Lucas?" Riley calls out, rushing down the slope of dead leaves and dirt. Smackle clambers after her, keeping an eye out. "Fang!"

Suddenly, rustling from behind one of the nearby trees stops Riley dead in her tracks. She can feel her heart pounding in her wrists. Smackle bumps into her from behind, holding her breath as the rustling grows louder.

"You know, they say the trees here are ancient," Smackle whispers, unable to stop filling the silence with facts as a coping mechanism. Her voice shakes slightly. "They supposedly hold a lot of secrets."

"Yeah, yeah," Riley breathes, wringing her hands together. "What did you say about the creatures that live here?"

Smackle opens her mouth to reply when the rustling stops, moments later being overpowered by a long, piercing howl. Both girls stand in shocked silence, uncertain what to do or where to move next. Riley thought it was silly of Farkle to be so worried about werewolves—she knows plenty of werewolves in history who were perfectly fine people—but now, standing on the edge of life or death, she isn't so sure. She didn't even bother to check if it was a full moon.

Tentatively, Riley takes a step forward towards the direction Fang went, his paw prints smudged in the dirt. When nothing happens, she releases a sigh and turns to face Smackle, giving her a reassuring smile.

That's when something leaps at her from behind the ancient trunk of one of the trees, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her slightly.

"Boo!"

Riley lets out the loudest, most blood-curling scream she's ever uttered, scrambling away towards Smackle and catching her breath. It takes her an embarrassingly long time to realize the spook isn't an actual threat—about as long as it takes for her to register Fang's yapping and the laughter echoing through the woods.

She whips around to find Lucas cracking up, Fang hopping around his feet and barking delightedly, almost as if he's laughing at her too. Riley pouts, crossing her arms indignantly. "You think that was funny?"

"You should've seen your face," Lucas says happily, leaning over to entertain Fang and scratch him proudly behind the ears. Although he's definitely laughing at her expense, it occurs to Riley that it doesn't seem cruel. As far as pranks go, his features don't betray any sort of malicious intent.

She decides to let it go, seeing as none of them are hurt and she sort of likes the sound of his laugh. It's because of him she's felt safe at all tonight, so she'll let this one slide. She wanders over to join him, Smackle keeping pace behind her. "How did you get Fang to stay so quiet?"

"Oh, me and Fang are buddies now," he says off-handedly, whistling for the hound to start forward again in the direction they're supposed to be going.

"Yeah, real nice buddies," she grumbles, crossing her arms as they continue onward.

Lucas gives her a lopsided grin, a little sheepish at the tone in her voice. "Sorry, Riley. I was just kidding around."

"Was the wolf howl really necessary?"

"That was Fang's idea, not mine."

"Well, it wasn't very nice," she says matter-of-factly, keeping her arms crossed over her chest as they make their way through the underbrush. "Smackle was just telling me all the stuff that's in here, and all the things you could've been. Like a bowtruckle. Or a bewitched car. Or a giant—,"

"Spider!" Smackle squeaks, freezing and pointing ahead of them.

Fang begins snarling as an massive shadow moves through the underbrush, a strange clicking accompanying the sound of movement against the forest floor. The smile is gone from Lucas's face, for the first time betraying just as much fear as Riley feels. In the next moment the shadow slowly rotates to face them, all Riley being able to make out through the dark being eight beady, twinkly eyes.

Her hand moves before she can stop herself, reaching down and finding Lucas's. She holds on tight, unable to do anything else but stand frozen at the creature peering through the underbrush before them. Lucas glances down at their hands but doesn't pull away, likely also immobile from terror.

Riley can't believe she's going to die before she even gets through first year. Lucas can't believe he's going to die and he can't even properly register the fact that Riley is holding his hand.

"There they are!"

The spider blinks once before disappearing back into the shadows of the trees, leaving the three of them standing shell-shocked at how close they probably came to death.

Maya breaks through the underbrush first, having shouted the words that saved their lives and not even realizing it. Hagrid emerges right behind her, followed by a very pale Farkle and a somewhat sick-looking Zay.

"Look at them," Farkle says quickly, pointing at Riley and Lucas. "They're holding hands."

Such a blunt reminder of the fact forces them out of their shock. Lucas glances down at their hands again before locking eyes with Riley, not surprised when she subtly pulls away from him and clasps her hands behind her back.

It feels a little like a cruel trick, but considering the prank he pulled he figures he deserves it. But as the group of them make their way back towards the castle, feeling much safer moving as a pack, he can't help but wonder if he'll ever experience it again, or if facing death is the only plausible way he'll ever get to hold Riley Matthew's hand.

 **YEAR 2**

Lucas's question is answered relatively quickly, seeing as the longer they're friends the more likely Riley is to grab his hand at a moment's notice.

Sure, it's not particularly special to him, as Riley is just very generous with touch when it comes to her friends. He learns this lesson well enough by their second year, after a few months of shoulder nudges and pats on the back and affectionate elbows to the ribs. If she's this comfortable with him and Zay and Smackle, the latter grimacing but accepting the touch whenever it comes, he can't imagine how much or how little time it takes to earn the level of trust she has with Maya.

With Maya, it's near constant attention whenever they're close enough—arms draped around shoulders, enthusiastic hugs whenever they reunite, arms linked together as they make their way through the bustling halls to protect themselves from being torn apart.

Lucas doesn't think he'd ever be able to reach that level, and he wouldn't want to usurp Maya to do it, but sometimes he has to wonder what it would be like to have Riley greet him with an excited embrace or link her arm in his just to keep from floating away.

In the meantime, he's got other things on his arm as winter rolls around. Bundled up and with his Gryffindor scarf wrapped securely around his neck, Lucas makes his way up to the owlery with Judy hopping restlessly on his shoulder.

He was a little surprised when his mother gave him the extra funds to buy a pet at Diagon Alley at the start of second year, and both Maya and Zay expressed great discontent at his choice to purchase a tiny, zippy little owl who can barely carry her own weight. She still hasn't quite mastered delivering packages, or letters, or anything really. But Lucas is obsessed with her anyway, much to the amusement of the older Gryffindor boys who like to poke fun at him in the common room.

Besides, Maya can't talk. She has a pet rat, for Merlin's sake.

He steps up to the door and giggles as Judy nibbles lightly at his ear, shrugging his shoulders slightly to get her to stop. He nudges her down his arm as best he can with his head, grinning as she hops onto the post in front of him.

"Okay, Judy, this is going to mom. Grace Friar. You got it?" He gently ties the rolled-up letter around her tiny foot. "Everyone else thinks you're a hack, but I know you can get this where it needs to go. Can't you? I know you can."

Judy hoots, pecking at his thumb. Despite incidentally drawing blood and earning a wince from him, he knows the gesture is affectionate.

Once the letter is secured, he guides her back onto his wrist and leads the way back out of the owlery, standing at the top of the steps and holding his arm out for her to take off. She waits a couple of moments for the wind to pick up, wings flapping unceremoniously until she catches the drift and takes flight, gliding away.

Lucas stands and watches her go, a speck of brown against the white sky of an incoming snowfall. It's hard to be in awe of the sight. Once she's well past the clouds he heads back down to the castle, sucking at the place on his thumb where Judy really got him.

"Lucas!" a familiar voice chirps as soon as he rounds the corner into the main hall. He jumps and moves out of the way just as Riley runs up to stand in front of him, Maya trailing along indignantly behind her. It's a miracle he didn't knock her over again.

"Hey," he says in surprise.

"Hi!"

"We've got to stop meeting like this," he jokes, referring to their near-collision.

Riley waves him off, obviously preoccupied with other matters. Whatever it is, it's got her all hyped up. "As long as we get to see each other, right? Were you just coming from the owlery?"

"Yeah, I was."

He opens his mouth to ask where she's off to in such a rush when he's caught off-guard as she suddenly grabs his hand, taking a look at his thumb. "Looks like Judy got you, huh?"

He doesn't remember how words work. "Yeah, a bit."

"Here, I've got a band-aid. One second."

"God," Maya says with an eye roll, finding a way to insert herself into the conversation. "Are you a witch or not? Use magic."

"Maya, we haven't learned spells that complex yet," Riley says prudently, removing a band-aid from her pocket and unwrapping it. Carefully, she holds Lucas's hand and sticks the bandage around his thumb, squeezing to make sure it's secure. "There."

"Thanks."

"Riles," Maya says pointedly, nudging her best friend in the ribs. "If we don't hurry, we're going to miss it."

"Miss what?"

"Oh, Lucas, you should come too!" Riley exclaims, wheeling around to face him again. "They're bringing in this super rare plant for Herbology and only the sixth years are going to get to see it, but if we go down there to watch them bring it in we might get a glimpse of it."

He has absolutely no idea what she's talking about, but the amount of excitement on her face is hard to say no to. As if he'd ever pass up the chance to spend time with Riley Matthews. She's beaming so brightly he has to wonder how the sun is the brightest star in the galaxy when she exists.

"Okay."

She lets out a gleeful yelp and starts forward again, and he barely has time to remember that she's got a firm grip on his hand before she's yanking him down the hall after her. Maya cracks up and the three of them jog out the doors and down towards the green, Riley not letting go of his hand the entire run to the greenhouses.

Maya ducks down behind a patch of overgrown pumpkins and waves for the two of them to follow, crouching and peering over the top of the row to get a good look at the greenhouse across the way. "How big do you think this thing is gonna be? Are we gonna be able to see it?"

"It's a rare kind of Venomous Tentacula," Riley says expertly, curiosity glittering in her brown eyes. "Supposedly much larger than anything we've seen in the school before. At least, that's what Josh told me."

"Josh told you this?" Maya rolls her eyes, unimpressed. "He was probably just messing with you. We're out here crouching in the dirt for nothing."

"He wouldn't just lie to me, Maya," she argues defensively, huffing and staring determinedly at the back entrance of the greenhouses. She turns to Lucas, tilting her head at him. "You believe me, don't you?"

"Yeah," he says without thinking, nodding agreeably. "Of course."

"Oh, like it's any surprise Huckleberry agrees," Maya mumbles. "He didn't even know about this until five seconds ago."

Lucas glances up to see Professor Longbottom approaching the back entrance to the greenhouse, magicking the door open and gesturing to someone unseen from the other side of the building. He nudges Riley urgently to get her attention, nodding in the direction of their Herbology professor.

The three of them watch as Longbottom steps back into the greenhouse, followed by two men in protective gear carrying a very large planter between them. Rooted in the soil is the largest, gnarliest potted creature Lucas has ever seen. His jaw drops at the sight of it, and a quick glare to his left shows him that both girls have similar reactions, their mouths hanging open.

"Oh my God!" Maya mutters in a voice barely above a whisper. "Did you see that thing?"

"Told you Josh wasn't lying!" Riley says triumphantly, elbowing Lucas and craning her neck to try and get another glimpse of it as it disappears into the greenhouse. "I told you! Isn't it amazing?"

"Amazing is one way to put it," she replies, grimacing slightly as the disturbing creature is shut into the greenhouse with a slam of the door.

But Lucas gets exactly where Riley is coming from. It's a little crazy to exist in a world where creatures like that exist, where a wave of a wand can open a door or heal a wound, where just about anything is possible with the right attitude and proper training.

He exhales, shaking his head in admiration. "I love magic."

Riley and Maya both turn to look at him—cheerfully and disdainfully, respectively.

Lucas decides Riley's smile is a special kind of magic all its own.

 **YEAR 3**

By third year, a handhold doesn't seem like such a big deal anymore.

Well, that's not entirely true. Lucas would be lying if he claimed he didn't feel his heart skip a beat any time Riley took his hand, no matter how many times she's done it before.

Riley would be lying if she claimed there wasn't a specific place in her stomach that flipped each time she linked their fingers together, whether it be for a display of affection or a sense of comfort. Lucas is one of her most treasured friends after all, and so far as their third year of schooling is concerned, she's starting to develop a friendship with him that extends past Maya and Zay. They're developing a friendship that's uniquely their own.

So a handhold or two doesn't feel out of place. It certainly doesn't cause the sort of freeze that it did in the Forbidden Forest first year.

It's also in third year that Maya has the bright idea of booking them a trip on the Knight Bus.

Lucas had spent most of winter break with them at Matthews' this year, a welcome change in Riley's opinion that she hopes becomes a tradition. Although he was clearly a bit uncomfortable with all the attention he got from her family, it's obvious that he deserves the warm holiday cheer and home-cooked food and mild smothering from her mother. They never talk about their home lives, but she has the feeling his is far from cushy. Far from what he deserves, in her humble opinion.

If she had it her way, Lucas Friar would get everything he wants in life and more. But magic can't do everything.

For the last few days of break, the three of them agreed to go to Zay's and celebrate the end of holiday with his parents. Riley is flattered by the invitation, but Maya points out its most likely Lucas they want to see and they're just tagging along. She chooses to ignore her cynical friend.

Her cynical friend also decides that the Knight Bus is the way to travel, so she figures out the best way to summon it and leads the way out of the Matthews house without much of a goodbye. Topanga waves after her before giving Riley a tight hug. "Write us if you need anything."

"You know I will," she assures them, accepting a hug from her father.

Auggie tugs at her coat, pulling her to kneel down in front of him. "When do I get to go to Hogwarts like you?"

"Oh, only a few more years," she promises, squeezing him tight. She knows how impatient he's been to get to Hogwarts, especially since she left him behind. She rises to her feet again just as Topanga is adjusting the scarf around Lucas's neck, nitpicking with good intentions as only a mother can.

"The same goes for you," she instructs him. "If you need anything, you feel free to send us a letter."

"Are you gonna come back next year?" Auggie asks him. "Or maybe this summer? Maybe you could just move in?"

Lucas laughs awkwardly, obviously unprepared for the attention. Riley smiles in spite of herself, tucking some hair behind her ear and watching him interestedly. "I think that's up to your parents."

"You're welcome here any time," Cory says graciously, before narrowing his eyes and pointing to him suspiciously. "So long as you stay where you're supposed to stay."

"And with that," Riley says, cutting off her father's protective tirade before it forays into awkwardness. "We should really be going."

"Let us know when you get there!"

"Will do," Riley agrees, taking Lucas's hand to tug him out of the doorway and into the winter air. She waves one more goodbye to her family as they shut the door behind them, leaving them in the cold darkness to fend for themselves.

Lucas disconnects his hand from hers to grab his bag, taking her suitcase too without even asking. Although she could very well carry the baggage on her own, she decides not to make a big fuss over it. The gesture makes her feel a little warmer inside. "I don't get why we didn't just use Floo Powder. Wouldn't that save us a whole lot of trouble?"

"You know, Hop-a-long, if you have a disagreement with my travel practices you can bring it up with me."

Riley grins as Lucas rolls his eyes, stopping next to her best friend on the curb. Above them, a light snow begins to fall, dusting their shoulders and luggage with flakes.

Maya plays with her wand, waiting impatiently and staring into the distance at nothing in particular. Lucas watches with amusement as Riley attempts to catch a snowflake on her tongue. It's an effective distraction until Maya groans in annoyance, stamping her foot on the gravel.

"I don't know why this isn't working. All it says is to hold out your wand like you're trying to hail a taxi. I don't think it could get much more to the point than that."

Lucas raises an eyebrow, walking forward and examining her stance. "You've never hailed a cab before in your life, have you?"

Maya rolls her eyes, but her pureblood understanding of the world shows through particularly prominently in that moment. "Like you know better."

"I do." Lucas takes her wand from her, Riley walking over and watching over his upper arm as he demonstrates. "You're being too stiff about it. It's more of a casual thing. If you hold it like this—,"

All the sudden, there's a bang from down the road like car backfiring, and they're lit in a blinding light as a pair of headlights approaches them at frightening speed. A huge double-decker bus veers straight towards them, seemingly with no intention of stopping.

"Maya!" Riley shrieks.

Lucas drops her wand and moves to push Riley out of the way as the bus screeches in their direction, only for Riley to slip on the slick pavement and grab his hand, sending them both tumbling down to the ground. Maya leaps out of the way just as the bus grinds to a halt inches in front of her. Considering they can see their breath from the chill in the air, it's obvious how shocked they all are as they fight to catch their breath.

Maya scrambles to her feet first, searching for her wand in the grass. Riley pushes herself onto her elbows in a daze, realizing that in her fall she landed halfway on top of her chivalrous friend who tried to get her out of the way in time.

"Sorry," she says apologetically, tenderly checking his head for any obvious signs of injury. "Are you okay?"

His voice is surprisingly crackly when he speaks again. He makes to clear his throat. "Um, yeah. All good."

A man steps down from the stairs of the bus, leaning nonchalantly against the frame and crossing his arms. "What are you doing on the ground for?"

Riley blushes, clambering off of Lucas helping him to his feet. Maya stands straighter and brandishes her wand out, attempting to come off as put together as possible. "Yes, hi. We're hoping to secure a ride."

"Sure thing. You got the funds?"

"We most certainly do." Maya doesn't let her confidence falter, but she leans back a bit to get her friend's attention. "Riley, the funds."

Riley steps forward and hands the man enough Sickles for the three of them. He counts them idly for a few long moments, Maya obviously growing impatient.

"Looks right to me. Welcome aboard the Knight Bus." He hops down to help Lucas with the bags, carrying them onto the vehicle. "I'm Harley Kiener, your conductor and go-to man for all things knightly and all things bussed. But you can just call me Harley."

Lucas climbs on last just as the doors creak shut behind them, giving Maya an uncertain look as they make their way into the aisle of the bus. With many beds but not many chairs, they're not sure where to settle. "Where should we—?"

"Hold on," is all Harley offers before the Knight Bus blasts again, taking off into the night.

All three of them are thrown backwards, unprepared for the speed at which they'd be traveling and reaching to grab the first bar they can grasp. Despite her insistence to take the transportation all break long, Maya suddenly looks a little less sure as they careen through side streets and weave in and out of busy traffic.

Riley reaches instinctively for Lucas's free hand, just for a sense of stability as they travel at breakneck speed. He doesn't seem to mind, gripping her hand tightly as the beds and tables rock dangerously back and forth around them.

"Um, Mister Harley Kiener," Riley says nervously, stumbling a bit on her feet and leaning into Lucas's side to regain her balance. "Are you sure this driving operation is safe?"

"Safe?" he cries out, seemingly offended by the insinuation. "Little Zippy, this Knight Bus has been in operation since the late nineteenth century. You'd think if there were issues to be had with our driving practices—,"

Riley makes a face. "Little Zippy?"

Maya sneers. "The nineteenth century?"

The bus takes a sudden swerve to avoid a back-up on the bridge. Maya grabs onto her pole with both hands.

"Then we'd have heard about it. Ernie here has been driving the Knight Bus for almost a century, if you have an issue with his operation you best take it up with him. Besides, we even just got that sticker attached to the back of the bus. You know, 'how am I driving? Call this number!' And we ain't ever had a bad complaint yet."

"That's probably because you're going too fast to read it," Maya points out.

"What's that you say?"

"Cow!" Lucas shouts.

Riley stares at him, following his wide-eyed line of vision to see out the dashboard window as they speed right towards a cow grazing its way into the middle of the road. Harley leans around to get a good look as well, sighing regrettably.

"They always gotta graze in the road."

In the next second the bus slams to a stop, inches from the cow. The animal doesn't seem to notice, but Riley, Lucas, and Maya definitely feel it, reeling backwards and collapsing into the steps that lead up to the second half of the double decker.

"Merlin's beard," Maya mutters numbly, blinking to shake off the daze.

"Oh, come on then, up on your feet," Harley chides, reclining back again and crossing his arms. "We'll be going again soon enough."

The rest of the ride progresses with a similar amount of mishaps, Riley certain all of them are going to have plenty of bruises to show for it in the morning. Even though she's comfortable enough holding Lucas's hand, she doesn't think he signed up to have his fingers broken by how firm her grip is.

"Coming up on your stop here," Harley says, not bothering to look up from the book he's reading.

"What?" Lucas says with a frown. "What are you talking about? We're in the middle of—,"

"Right about now."

The bus slams to a stop in the middle of a cozy neighborhood. Riley knows, because she, Lucas, and Maya ram into the glass as soon as the vehicle stalls, thrown up against the window in the least graceful manner possible. She's not entirely sure she didn't actually break one of Lucas's fingers.

Harley helps them toss their stuff off the bus. "Hope you enjoyed your ride. Feel free to call and let us know what you thought of our services."

"Oh, I've got something to say," Maya snaps.

Before she can finish the thought, the bus backfires again, zooming out of sight and into the wintery mix. The propulsion is enough to rocket Maya backwards off her feet, collapsing on her butt in the snow. Riley almost suffers a similar fate but Lucas manages to catch her, grabbing her waist before she can tumble to the ground.

"Hey, you made it!" Zay's familiar voice greets them as he exits his front door, walking down the stoop to meet them. "Maya, what're you on the ground for?"

Riley gives Lucas a grateful smile, disentangling herself from him to grab their things. As her friendship with him develops, she secretly hopes that he'll always be around to be the hand she can hold when she needs to feel a sense of stability. Or at the very least, he'll catch her if she's about to fall.

 **YEAR 4**

For whatever reason, fourth year casts a shadow of doubt over their developing relationship. Riley is no longer sure that Lucas will be there to catch her if she falls. Lucas is pretty sure that Riley would rather have anyone else in the world reach out to hold her than him.

This is thanks to two very specific factors—the Yule Ball, and Charlie Gardner.

The pressure of such a romantic tradition puts a peculiar strain on the upperclassmen of Hogwarts, and it has nothing to do with the stress of the Triwizard tournament. Asking teenagers to put themselves out there and ask one another to a formal event sort of feels like asking them to jump into the Black Lake with the mermaids or willing face the dragon—both of which feel easier than possible rejection.

Farkle and Smackle exhibit this perfectly, when his go-to method for getting her to go to ball with him seems to be to scream at her from one end of the hallway. She yells back an agreement, but only on the basis of the fact that she figures he's the only one who could hold a decent conversation with her.

"Isn't it crazy," Riley says with a content sigh, shaking her head as Smackle storms off in one direction and Farkle embarrassedly darts down the other end of the hall. "How crazy about each other they are?"

Crazy definitely seems like the best way to describe. Lucas doesn't see how anybody could possibly ask someone to the ball, especially someone they'd actually really like to go with and that would seriously hurt to be rejected by. Lucas starts an invitation to Riley a million times while they're studying, at the breakfast table, walking to class, only to chicken out and change the subject before he can actually pose the question.

When Zay works up the courage to ask Vanessa, a clever and stunning Slytherin in their year who he'd been enraptured with since last year when they shared Care of Magical Creatures class together, and she by some miracle says yes, Lucas knows he has to get his act together. Even if he isn't going to ask Riley, he needs to ask someone or else face the reality of going stag to the only Yule Ball they're going to get in their time as students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

It's all he can think about, and it's what he's stressing over as he exits the school and heads down the grounds towards Hagrid's hut, naturally running right into Riley on her way back up from the greenhouses.

"Oh, God," she says with a laugh, patting his arms gratefully when he reaches out to catch her from stumbling. "Lucas, you scared me."

"We've got to stop meeting like this," he jokes, letting go of her waist and stepping around her.

She nods, smiling shyly and tucking some stray hair behind her ear that managed to escape her messy ponytail. "You headed to Hagrid's?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, cool. Tell him I say hi."

"Can do." He should ask her. They're just standing there, no one else is within ear shot. She gives him a good-natured grin and starts to turn away from him, heading back towards the castle. "Riley."

"Yes?"

"Would you want to maybe go to the ball with me?" The words come out so fast even he doesn't exactly understand what he just said. He can feel his hands shaking so he stuffs them in his pockets where she can't see them.

She turns around, tilting her head curiously. "What? Sorry, I didn't hear you."

"I—," he starts, clearing his throat and forcing himself to speak more clearly. Speak now, or forever hold his peace. "I was wondering, if maybe, you'd consider, well, if you'd maybe want to go to the ball. With me. Together."

Riley blinks at him, her features not conveying any sort of opinion on the matter except surprise. Finally, the ghost of a smile forms over her lips. "Oh, Lucas. That's so sweet. I… I'd love to go with you."

He lets out a sigh of relief. "Really? Great. Well—,"

"But I can't."

Suddenly, he recognizes the emotion coloring the smile on her lips. It's not flattery. It's not affection. It's something far, far worse.

Pity.

"Charlie already asked me," she explains timidly, fiddling with a seam on the front of her robes. "You know Charlie, right? He plays on our Quidditch team. He's a Seeker, I think."

Lucas forces himself to speak. "Yeah, I know him."

"Yeah. He asked me about a week ago. And I told him I'd go." She frowns slightly, looking at him sympathetically. "I already told him I'd go with him."

"Oh." He doesn't know what else to say. He's afraid if he leaves his mouth open too long, the humiliation will make him vomit. "Oh."

"I'm sorry," she says, sincerity shining through her gaze. It's obvious she means it. "I really do mean it though. I would've loved to go with you."

He knows she's being honest, but it doesn't help matters. All it does is sting. Everything stings. Lucas swallows hard, nodding and scooting around her to head back up towards the castle. "Okay. Thanks."

"Aren't you going to Hagrid's?"

"It's okay. Thanks," he repeats blankly, not exactly processing her words as he makes his way back up to the front entrance. It's amazing how sharply pity stings.

Lucas and Maya finally decide to go together as friends under the advice of their friend Asher in the common room one evening as they're both moping about, Maya grumping over the fact that Josh Matthews won't even give her the time of day even if she did bother to ask, and Lucas still stinging from his outright rejection. The worst part of it is he knows that maybe if he'd asked earlier, she may have said yes. If he'd asked earlier, Charlie wouldn't have gotten there first.

The worst part is Riley is going to the ball with perfect Hufflepuff prince Charlie Gardner and it's all his fault.

Zay leaves early the night of the event to meet up with Vanessa, so Maya and Lucas set out to leave on their own. When he descends down from the boys dormitory and finds her dully lounging in one of the armchairs in front of the fire, it certainly lowers the appeal of her formal appearance. When she rises to her feet to get a good look at him, even he has to admit that his spitfire friend is pretty stunning when she puts a little effort in. Classically Gryffindor, she looks very nice in red.

She looks severely less impressed with him, sneering. "Blue dress robes? Really? We couldn't even match?"

"What?" he says defensively, shrugging as they exit the portrait hole and head towards the staircase. "I'm just playing the part. Josh is a Ravenclaw, isn't he?"

Maya steps very intentionally on his foot in her four inch heels, making her point loud and clear. "Shut up, Huckleberry."

They're stiff as they link arms and enter the great hall, transformed into an illustrious, winter-themed ballroom for the evening. Lucas scans the crowd for Zay but ends up finding Smackle instead, catching her attention and causing her to glide over to them, Farkle right on her heels.

"Lucas, Maya, you both look lovely this evening. I see you're branching out colors wise."

"Yeah, you too, Smack," Maya says pleasantly, raising her eyebrows at Farkle as she takes in his lush evergreen suit. "Gee, Farkle. You sure clean up well."

"Thank you, Maya," he says smugly, clasping his hands together in front of him.

"It's nice to see you haven't killed each other yet," Lucas comments.

Farkle looks like he wants to say something, but Smackle beats him to it. She smiles up at him, a surprising amount of genuine warmth radiating from her. He beams back. "He's proven himself to be an acceptable dance partner. He at least provides an engaging enough conversation."

They're distracted as Zay slides over to join them, having found them amongst the crowd. "There you guys are!"

"We'll leave you to it, then," Smackle says, drifting away. Farkle follows along behind her, more than a little bit smitten from the expression on his face.

"Lucas, check her out," Zay demands, grabbing his best friend and turning him to face the other end of the room. Vanessa stands talking to a few of her Slytherin friends, gorgeous as ever in a sleek silver dress and with her lovely curls. "Can you believe she was dumb enough to say yes to me? I'm really here with Vanessa Johnson. Can you believe that?"

"I'm happy for you, buddy," he nods, patting him on the shoulder. "Don't you think you should be there with her, though? Lest she realize her mistake?"

"You're right. You're so right. But don't go far, okay? They're gonna get the band up there soon and they're we're gonna party on. It's going to be so wicked."

Maya and Lucas don't drift very far, both in pretty sour moods to start. The night isn't a total disaster though, as both of them manage to avoid their would-be dates and enjoy some dancing with their Gryffindor classmates. Lucas runs into Dave and Jade, two Ravenclaws he got to know in Charms, and they give him a compliment on his blue dress robes.

Lucas figures he's going to make it through the evening alright until he runs into Riley by the drinks, the stinging surging all over again.

"Lucas!" she says brightly, cheeks flushed and smile wide from an obviously enjoyable evening. In her pastel yellow dress with her hair done up in an intricate, elegant braid, she's even harder to look away from. "Aren't you just having the time of your life? This is the best night ever. I love your robes. Blue is such a nice color on you."

"Uh, yeah. Thanks." It's a lot of conversation to absorb all at once. "You look really beautiful."

A blush crawls up Riley's cheeks. She waves him off humbly. "I really love the music. And the cake is delicious, have you tried it yet? It's just… it's such a great night. I don't ever want it to end."

Lucas tries not to think about the fact that this attitude of hers is probably due to being there with Charlie. He tries not to let it bother him.

"Lucas."

"Huh?"

"Who are you here with? Did you bring someone?"

"Oh, uh, yeah," he says blankly. "Maya and I came together."

A different emotion flashes through Riley's features for a fraction of a second, a far cry from the joy written all over her expression. She furrows her brow, still managing a smile although it's noticeably thinner. "Maya? You and Maya are here together?"

"Yeah."

There's a sudden chill in the air between them. Lucas sort of wonders if it's new, or if it's building up for a while now and is just starting to permeate into the atmosphere around them. It certainly puts a damper on the conversation, and as the band starts up a slow song, Lucas figures that's his cue to leave her alone.

"Well, guess I should go. Charlie's probably waiting for you," he says, giving her a nod and avoiding eye contact as he steps away from her.

There's a second of hesitation. "Lucas, wait."

Riley reaches out to take his hand, and for a split second it's like the rest of the world freezes in time. Lucas glances down at their hands before locking eyes with her, searching her face for the reason she held him back.

She doesn't know what it is. There feels like a million things she could say, should say. She should tell him she's sorry. She should ask him to dance. She should ask him why he didn't bother to ask her sooner, because if he had maybe it'd be them here together instead of her and Charlie. Instead of him and her best friend.

Because if he had, she knows she would've said yes.

Lucas breaks the moment first, stepping away from her and taking his hand from hers. "Go, Riley. Enjoy your dance."

He doesn't wait for her to reply, spinning around and striding away from her. Putting a thousand miles of distance between them with every step he takes.

"Hey," Charlie says, coming up to her side and following her eye line to deduce what's caught her attention. "Everything okay?"

"What? Yes," she says, managing a cheerful tone. "Yes, everything is fine."

Charlie smiles, offering her a hand. After a moment, she takes it. All things considered, Charlie is a very nice guy. She should be so lucky to have such a nice guy interested in her.

As the song progresses, it seems her and Lucas's friendship isn't the only thing crumbling a bit. Smackle storms past Riley and Charlie, dismayed enough to draw Riley's attention. She's about to say something when Farkle comes jogging after Smackle, delaying her words. "Smackle!"

"Farkle, I would rather not speak to you right now," she says delicately, lacking her usual tenacity. She spins on her heel and faces him, expression stony. "Thank you for the evening. I had a wonderful time. And now, I'd like to go. Good night."

Farkle stares after her, obviously dumbstruck as to what might've happened. Glancing over her shoulder, Riley sees a similar situation unfolding as Maya gets to her feet from where she and Lucas were sitting. Zay is standing by them, more than a little miffed even from where she's standing.

"Are you really going to end the night like this?" he snaps, putting his hands on his hips and staring down his mopey best friends. "We get one Yule Ball, and you're both going to call it quits and spend the rest of the night grumping."

"Why do you even care, Zay?"

"Because you're bringing down the whole night!" Zay shakes his head at them, evidently frustrated by their behavior. "I get that you're both pissy you didn't get to go with who you wanted to, but you don't have to make everyone else miserable with your terrible attitude."

"Well, sorry you feel that way," Maya says mockingly. "How terrible for you."

"You know what, Maya?"

Zay is about to lay into her when both of them go quiet, Josh passing by with his date Sophie Miller, a seventh year and Head Girl. Maya watches them, biting the inside of her cheek and turning her tearful glare on Zay. He doesn't have anything more to say.

She looks to Lucas, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms. "You ready to go?"

He gazes across the room at Riley with her arms around Charlie, swaying to the music. She catches him glance in her direction. "Let's bounce."

"Real mature, you guys," Zay gripes as the two of them storm off together. "You're wasting a perfectly good evening!"

Lucas doesn't reply, gritting his teeth and fidgeting to undo his tie. He pretends he doesn't notice Maya silently crying next to him as they walk out together.

What he really doesn't notice is Riley watching them go, feeling a little tearful herself at the fact that her two best friends feel a million miles away from her and she has no idea why. She has no idea why they decided to leave her behind.

 **YEAR 5**

Fifth year, for all its trouble, erases most of the damage done by the previous year and puts Lucas and Riley back where they're supposed to be. They're certainly not reluctant to hold hands, in any case.

They're really very comfortable with one another at this point, and Riley has never had a problem showing affection towards those she's comfortable with. So maybe they like to hold hands when they walk down the hall together. So maybe she likes to give him a peck on the cheek when she greets him the great hall or when they say goodbye to head off to their separate classes. People make assumptions, and it's not up to Riley to correct every rumor about them she hears flitting through the halls. If her classmates want to believe they're secretly in a relationship, then she figures they can believe what they want. Fifth year has enough to otherwise preoccupy her attention.

It's near-expulsions and dramatics and continued confusion over feelings for all of their friends. But it's also hippogriff rides, and successful OWL exams, and the feeling of finally starting to figure out just exactly who they're all going to be when they leave this place in a couple of years.

As Riley is walking along the halls, watching all the students celebrate the end of term, she can't help but feel overwhelmed with affection for this grand castle and its hallowed halls. All the people she's met and things she's learned and all the memories that are locked away inside it. If she's feeling emotional now, she can't imagine what a wreck she's going to be in two years.

Having said goodbye to Zay, as well as Farkle and Smackle who officially survived an entire year as a couple with no intention of calling it quits, Riley is on the search to find her other best friend before she and Maya leave with her father for the summer.

She finds Lucas exactly where she figured she would, tucked away in the back corridor of the third floor. She knows of it only because Maya led her there one day back in second year, and considering how tough the year was for him she assumed he'd be up here to reflect the best way he knows how—by ignoring it entirely and focusing on something else.

In this case, a fantasy.

He's sitting in front of the colossal mirror when she rounds the corner to find him, arms wrapped around his knees with a distant, thoughtful expression on his face. She watches him for a moment, unable to help the fond smile that creeps onto her lips, before she wanders over to join him.

He's a bit startled when she settles down next to him, giving him a friendly beam. He nods and focuses back on the mirror in front of him, a little less absorbed than before.

Riley knows he's been here before. Many times, in fact, if Maya's account is truthful. But she's never mentioned what exactly he's looking at when he stares into the glass for hours at a time—Riley's fairly certain he's never told her. It would make sense, considering both of her best friends are very private people. They could sit in front of the mirror together for hours at a time and never mutter one word to each other.

Riley, on the other hand, thinks talking would do him better.

"There's a bunch of people," she says.

Lucas tears his gaze away from the mirror to give her a confused look. "Huh?"

"I see a bunch of people," she repeats softly, trying her best to relay what she sees when she stares at the reflective surface towering in front of them. Knowing he sees something entirely different. "A crowd, really. There's a crowd of people and I'm there too, but I think the point is that I'm standing out. There's all these people but everyone else is blurry. For whatever reason, I'm remarkable. I stand out. I'm the only thing you can focus on."

"That's how I see you," Lucas says without thinking.

Riley hesitates. She doesn't look at him, keeping her attention on the mirror. Her heart is pounding in her wrists again, but not from fear. "In the mirror?"

Lucas glances at her, realizing his mistake. He swallows, not offering her an answer, but she gets what he meant. He's always looked at her a little differently than everyone else. It's only in the last year or so that she started to realize it. It's only in the last year or so that she started to realize she looks at him a little differently, too.

"There aren't a lot of people," Lucas says, eyes fixed on the mirror.

"In the mirror?"

"In the mirror. I don't see a lot of people. Just a few important ones. And I'm there too. And these people are looking at me, sizing me up. And I think they like what they see. These really important people…" he trails off, trying to find the right words. He presses his palm into his fist, anxiously fidgeting for the sake of moving. "They're proud of me."

Riley gazes at him, tilting her head. "That's how I see you."

"How?"

"I'm proud of you," she explains. At the look of disbelief on his face, she nudges his arm with her shoulder. "I'm serious. Why wouldn't I be? Everything you overcame this year? I mean, from the expulsion, and the nonsense from Quidditch last year, to where you are now. You have friends who love you, a passion you're great at, a role as a teaching assistant for a class you really enjoy lined up next year. You did great on your OWLs. Anyone who really knows you would be crazy not to be proud of you."

Lucas lifts his gaze from his hands to meet her eyes, smiling bashfully after a moment of hesitation. Although he doesn't say much, she knows how much the words mean to him. She's glad she means every single one.

"You know, they say the most powerful thing about this mirror is how it sucks you in. There's so much wonderful, desirable stuff in the reflection—our greatest desire, after all—that we forget to live on the other side."

Riley reaches forward to take his hand. It's a gesture she's done a million times before, even more so in the past year than ever before. But this time it feels a little different. A little more in focus.

Lucas glances at the mirror again before locking eyes with her. He finds it a little crazy how no matter how easy it is to get lost in the Mirror of Erised, it's much simpler to get lost in her brown eyes.

"I think you and I have some pretty great stuff going on here on the other side. It would be a shame to lose it all to whatever is in that reflection."

Lucas nods, linking their fingers together. She smiles warmly, scooting closer to him and resting her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes. Not getting caught up in the fantasy in the reflection, but not jumping back into the real world quite yet. Enjoying this small in-between place she and Lucas share. Where she's always felt safe. Where she feels the most at home.

He thinks on her words for a little while longer, placing his other hand on top of their joined fingers and tilting his head against hers. He has to admire the way Riley plunges forward into the uncertainty of the future with seemingly no trepidation at all. She has her reservations and insecurities, sure, but she approaches them with optimism rather than doubt.

He thinks maybe he could learn a thing or two from her.

 **YEAR 6**

Lucas and Riley are very good at holding hands by the time sixth year kicks into gear.

It's a bit of a learning curve, relationships, but it's something the two of them have been practicing at for a long time so they've got somewhat of a leg up on their peers. They get a taste of this watching Smackle and Farkle attempt to navigate their continuing romantic entanglement, which they still seem to be getting the hang of after a year together as a pair.

"I'm just saying, if you guys paid attention in History of Magic, maybe you wouldn't be struggling so hard to write this paper."

"Imagine caring that much about History of Magic," Zay says with an eye roll, leaning around Farkle to shoot Lucas a look as they made their way down the hall. Farkle had grown quite a few inches since first year, so it was impossible to look over him now.

Lucas shakes his head with a smirk, grinning wider when he spots Riley heading towards them from the other end of the hall. Maya and Smackle are with her, and when the group of them come face to face in the middle of the corridor there's an awkward pause as all of them try to figure out exactly what to say.

Learning curve, after all.

"We find out about the Slug Club this afternoon," Smackle says to break the silence, speaking to the group but keeping her eyes on Farkle. "Shall we meet to check the owlery for the invitations together?"

"Sounds like a plan to me," Farkle says agreeably, giving her a proud smirk. Riley catches Maya roll her eyes—if anyone was guaranteed a spot in the coveted inner circle of the potions master, it would definitely be Farkle Minkus or Isadora Smackle.

Another long silence. Smackle clears her throat. "Well, then, I'll see you after class."

"See you then." After a moment of hesitation, Farkle leans down to tentatively place a kiss to Smackle's cheek. Although the rest of them are attempting to hold back their giggles, it's obvious Smackle rather enjoys the display of affection—impressive, considering her aversion to everyone else.

As the girls push past them to walk away, Riley catches Lucas off-guard by giving him a light pinch to the ribs. "See you later."

He has to resist the urge to follow after her.

Lucas turns back to his friends just as Zay is breaking into chuckles at Farkle's expense. He rolls his eyes at them, leading the way towards their Divination class. "Oh, shut up."

When invitations are given out for Slughorn's annual Christmas party, Lucas and Zay finds themselves as the only two without an invite. Although it doesn't surprise him, Lucas has to admit it bites a little bit that all of his friends are considered impressive, elite students worthy of getting to know better, and he isn't even given a second glance.

"Oh, come on, Lucas," Asher says in the common room that evening, flipping his invitation nonchalantly in his fingers and attempting to cheer the two of them up. "You know it doesn't mean much. He'll probably toss half of us in the garbage after this party anyway. It's just a schmooze technique."

"Yeah," Maya agrees, lowering her invitation dangerously close to the fire, pulling it away at the last second and repeating the motion a few more times for good measure. "And you know he's not going to want me back."

"Why's that?"

"Because we get to bring a guest, and I'm bringing along you," she says, pointing to Zay. "On the condition that you act as obnoxious as possible."

"Free food and an excuse to be annoying?" He grins, reclining more comfortably into the couch and propping his feet up on the table. "Sounds like a wonderful evening to me."

Lucas's derision doesn't last long, as Riley is kind enough to invite him as her guest so he won't miss out on any of the festivities. It's just a courtesy move on her part, but still, Lucas puts concentrated effort into dressing nicely. He gets the information on what dress Riley is wearing from her roommate Darby, so when he meets her in the entrance hall wearing just the right amount of green to compliment her lilac dress, she's obviously pleasantly surprised.

"Wow, you look great," she says cheerfully, standing on her tip-toes to press a kiss to his cheek. He knows they're just friends and everything, but he holds a certain amount of pride at the fact that he's practically the only one of her friends who gets cheek kisses.

"So do you. I mean, you always do." She beams at him and he offers his arm for her to take. She does so, linking their fingers together and leading the way towards the dungeons.

The party passes on without much to do, the most entertaining aspect of the evening coming from Zay and Maya's attempts to be as insufferable as they possibly can. The way they're managing, it would be a true miracle if Slughorn invited her back in the future.

Riley examines one of the trays of food on the table in front of them, eyeing it curiously and raising an eyebrow at Lucas. "What do you think it is?"

"I don't know. Never seen it before."

"As my guest, I expect you to know these things."

"Hey, you're the pureblood here, not me," he jokes, stuffing his hands in his pockets and giving her a challenging look. "Why don't you try it? That'll let you know."

She crinkles her nose uncertainly. "What if it's like… gross? What if it's like, dragon balls?"

"Won't know until you try."

She nudges him, narrowing her eyes before reaching down to pick up one of the strangely shaped hors d'oeuvres. She places it quickly into her mouth and chews carefully, her expression relaxing rather than screwing up. She gives Lucas a thumbs up.

"Riley!"

She nearly chokes at being addressed, causing Lucas to crack up. She swallows the remainder of the snack just as Charlie Gardner approaches them, greeting them with a friendly smile.

"Lucas, you're here too. That's great."

"Oh, yeah, Riley invited me."

"Awesome," Charlie says, smiling as Riley finishes avoiding choking on her food and offers a nod of agreement. "You know, it's so good to see you guys together."

Both of them wear matching expressions of uncertainly. Riley can feel her cheeks flush. "Oh, it's not like—,"

"We're not—,"

"I just—,"

"She just invited me—,"

"We're just friends," they conclude in unison, exchanging bashful eye contact before dropping their gazes to the floor. Lucas clasps his hands in front of him, nodding to emphasize the point.

Charlie stares at them for a couple of moments, amusement coloring his features. "Right."

It's fairly obvious he doesn't believe them. And for what it's worth, neither of them seem entirely convinced either.

Maya ends up getting invited back for another party. "I told you this thing was rigged."

By the middle of spring term, Lucas and Riley finally stop dancing around each other and get together, much to the relief of their weary classmates. For many of them, it comes as a surprise simply because most of them thought they were already together.

Despite all the amazing years they've had as friends to get to know one another and the amazing rest of term they have getting to wear in their new relationship, Riley can't help but be a little nervous as they disembark from the Hogwarts Express and get ready to head their separate ways for the summer. They've done so every year, but this year it feels different—there's a lot more to lose if something should go wrong.

Maya and Zay walk ahead of them, not bothering to wait up for them to say goodbye. "Can you believe we're going to be able to apparate here next year?"

"Yeah, that's what you think," Zay laughs. "You're going to show up here missing a leg."

Riley and Lucas walk to the edge of the platform hand in hand, easily spotting Topanga and Auggie waiting for her amongst the crowd of parents. Even with all the times she's held his hand in the past six years, she suddenly doesn't want to let go.

"You're coming back next year, right?" she asks for about the fifth time since they got on the train, turning to face him. "You're eighteen, you don't technically have to do seventh year if—,"

"Yes, Riley," he assures her, giving her a fond smile. "I'm coming back next year."

She hesitates. "And you're going to write?"

"I'm going to write. Like I do every summer." He reaches up to push some hair behind her ear, raising his eyebrows at her. "Would you relax? Nothing is any different than before. Everything's going to be fine."

She inhales deeply, breaking into a grateful smile and pulling him forward into a hug. He embraces her tightly, pressing a kiss into her hair. "Everything's changed," she says into his shoulder.

"Is that a good thing?"

They pull apart, examining each other for a long moment. All things considered, even though change is scary, Riley figures she wouldn't have it any other way. She's choosing to look at it with fascination rather than fear. Lucas is choosing to look at it with optimism rather than doubt. Amazing, the things they learn from each other.

"I think it is, yeah." She smirks at him. "Would you concur?"

Lucas doesn't provide a reply, choosing instead to take both her hands and give her a long kiss. It's not a verbal affirmation, but it gets the point across.

Her hand leaves his as she jogs to meet up with her family, but she's not so afraid anymore. She knows it's only a matter of time before she gets to hold it again.

 **YEAR 7**

Nothing's changed and everything's changed, but they've come a long way since they first held hands in the Forbidden Forest.

Seventh year finds both of them being named Head Boy and Head Girl, and with it they move into the special dormitories reserved just for them. It's a shame to leave Darby and Zay and Asher and all the roommates they've been living with for the past six years, but trading them out for getting to live right across the hall from one another isn't such a bad exchange.

Especially once they figure out exactly which charm can be used to silence the alarm in the rooms that tips off Headmaster Turner that they may have members of the other gender in their living quarters. Lucas has always excelled in Charms.

It's a worthy trade-off, but it has it's qualms—most importantly that having each other as distractions in the morning makes being late to class much more common and skipping class much more tempting.

"We're going to be late," Riley whines indignantly after accepting another long kiss from him, both of them sprawled comfortably in his bed this morning. "Come on, let's go."

He hums disagreement, taking her face in his hands and pulling her back down for another kiss. She doesn't put up much of a fight. "Five more minutes."

"You said that five minutes ago."

"I stand by my words."

She giggles, pressing a kiss to his nose and crawling to her knees. "Come on, up. We're Head Boy and Girl. We can't be encouraging such nonsense to the young, impressionable students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"You know, they don't know what we're doing when we show up late to class," Lucas argues as both of them make themselves presentable for the day. They have an even share of each other's clothes stashed in their rooms, so it's never a hassle getting ready no matter which room they end up in. "We could be running important errands. Taking care of important things. We could be studying."

"I think the last thing anybody would believe is the idea that you, Lucas Friar, are studying."

He gasps in faux offense, tucking his shirt halfway into his pants and leaning forward to give her a quick kiss. "I happen to be doing an awful lot of studying. You just happen to be my favorite subject."

She rolls her eyes, but she can't help the smile that creeps onto her lips. She reaches forward to straighten his tie, getting distracted over that one button he allows manages to leave undone. It's bothered her since third year and still does, but the nature of the obsession has changed quite a bit. In third year, all she wanted to do was reach over button it up so his uniform would be in perfect order—nowadays, she debates whether to button up the last one or undo the rest of them.

Nothing's changed, but boy has everything changed.

She decides to leave it as it always is, reaching down to take his hand. "I don't think McGonagall is going to be very impressed with that reasoning if you show up any later to Transfiguration. Let's go."

As she's done a million times before, she leads him by the hand as they jog out of the Head dormitories and down the moving staircase towards class. They stay linked together until they have to part ways in the entrance hall, Lucas heading towards Transfiguration and Riley headed towards the dungeons for Advanced Potions.

"See you at lunch." She presses a quick kiss to his cheek, squeezing his hand and starting to move away.

It's then that Lucas notices the mistake she made in dressing so hastily this morning—one of his bold red Gryffindor ties secured around her neck rather than the usual golden yellow of Hufflepuff. He tightens his grip on her hand to stop her as she starts down the steps. "Riley, wait."

She whips around to gaze up at him, curiosity coloring her features. He opens his mouth to say something but decides against it. He decides he likes her in red anyway.

"Have a good day."

She smiles affectionately at him, giving his hand one last squeeze before letting go and continuing her jog down the steps. "Get to class, silly."

Lucas watches her go, waiting until she disappears into the dungeon before starting his own jog to class. He's definitely going to hear it from Professor McGonagall, but he figures it's well worth it. Any time with Riley is well worth it.

He's always loved magic, and Riley Matthews is definitely the rarest kind of magic he's ever known.


End file.
